Royal Arrangements
by Maydrei
Summary: In order to soothe relations between the Fire Nation and the Water Tribes, the Emperor offers to cease fighting if they agree to give him a bride. Katara accepts, shocking everyone. Why did she agree? And what happens when Zuko decides to interfere?
1. Chapter 1

**After months of not writing anything, I finally kicked my butt into gear and pumped this out. The idea has been bouncing around in my head for a long time but I finally got it out just now. I hope you enjoy reading.**

"There it is now. We should arrive within the hour."

Prince Zuko nodded, resting his hands on the rail and looking at the island that had appeared on the horizon . All he could see right was a chunk of ice, almost blinding with the glare of the sun.

He turned away, frowning. He just couldn't understand what his father was planning with this. And for the lady in question to agree? It didn't add up.

"Why the long face, Prince Zuko?" His uncle Iroh walked up to his side, assessing the island that was slowly coming into view. After a moment, he turned to face him. A bemused smile was on his mouth. "After all, there is a wedding being planned. Soon you are going to have a mother."

Zuko glared at him, his grip tightening on the rail. "You know full well how I feel about this. I'm not in the mood for jokes."

Iroh shrugged. "There's no need to be so sour. Excuse me for being excited about getting a beautiful sister-in-law."

Zuko snorted. "You haven't ever set eyes on her—for all we know she could look like a cowbear."

Iroh waved his hand. "All the stories of her praise her _beauty_ right along with her healing magic. Nowhere did they mention anything about cowbears."

Zuko gave him a withering glance. "Yes, well, it's hard to make cowbears sound romantic. You know how those ridiculous poets like to exaggerate." He dropped his voice. "All the legends of my father make him sound like a glorious leader who keeps the peace with his great merciful army."

Iroh's eyes hardened. "You know better than to speak of that in public."

The unspoken word _treason _hung between them.

Zuko sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I know. It's just this whole situation—something isn't right. He must be planning something."

"Yes, well, let's just keep our heads down and follow our orders like good soldiers."

Zuko stared down at the water. Hadn't he been doing that all his life? He was beginning to get rather tired of it.

Half an hour later they arrived at the island. A small welcoming party was waiting at the dock, formal greetings and other such protocol followed. Zuko tried to hide his impatience with all of it; neither side was fooled.

The Fire Nation was politically kidnapping their beloved princess, subjecting her to a life chained to a man rumored to be a monster. And there was nothing they could do about it unless they were willing to go to war against a far superior army that was well prepared and infamously ruthless.

His father's cruelty never ceased to amaze him.

"And where is the bride?" Iroh asked, drawing Zuko's attention back to the conversation.

An elderly woman spoke up. "She is currently seeing to her patients, making sure they will be alright after her departure." The old woman nodded to the building behind her. "She should be done any moment now."

As the representatives continued talking, Zuko decided his presence wouldn't be missed and discreetly left the group.

Stepping inside, Zuko saw that the entryway was deserted. Several doorways lead off in different directions, curtains hanging in the portals to give privacy. Wondering if he could just poke around, Zuko realized that he didn't even know what the princess looked like. Or even what her name was.

His thoughts were interrupted as someone pulled aside a curtain to his right. A young woman ducked out, then paused as she saw him. Her eyes quickly registered his uniform and the young woman straightened, raising her chin. "I don't approve of Fire Nation soldiers in my hospital," she told him evenly.

Zuko turned, raising an eyebrow. Unless all Water Tribe girls were this brazen, she must be the one he was looking for. He had heard that she was rather…straightforward.

Before he could say anything, however, the young woman noticed his scar. Zuko was used to this and it hardly bothered him anymore, but her reaction surprised him. Usually, people would see him, flick their eyes to his deformity, and then quickly look away, hoping that he hadn't noticed. But she didn't do that. In fact, she titled her head and blatantly stared. Annoyed at being looked at like a circus freak, Zuko was about to snap at her, but then she said, "I had always wondered why it hadn't been healed. But I doubt that even the greatest healer would be able to erase that." Seeing Zuko's confused look, she amended, "Sorry, it's a healer thing. Never mind." She flicked her long black braid over her shoulder. "You must be Prince Zuko."

Zuko kept his suprise from his face. She was so young, his own age. And she was to be married to his father? The idea of this young thing being subjected to the horrors of his father…He pushed away those thoughts, they were none of his business. "Yes, that's correct. Princess of the South Water Tribe, I presume…?"

The girl smirked and shook her head. "My name is Katara. The South Water Tribe doesn't actually have a princess. But yes, I'm the one you're here for."

Inwardly Katara's heart was breaking. She had tried to steel herself for this moment, but she doubted anything could have prepared her to leave everything she held dear. She kept a polite smile on her face as she was introduced to General Iroh and the rest of the party that had come to take her away, but inside she hated them, every single one. How could true men bow to serve such a monster as the Fire Emperor? Were these soldiers just as twisted as their leader? Her skin crawled as she eyed their skull-like helmets, wondering what was behind those masks. Perhaps they weren't even men, but demons who had sold their souls to join the ranks that served the worst of them all.

It had been arranged earlier that the travelling party would leave before sunset. Katara's friends and family had argued, wanting her to stay longer, but Katara refused. She needed to be strong, and if this was dragged out there was no way she would be able to keep herself from breaking down.

Katara's few possessions were quickly loaded onto the ship as she said her goodbyes. She hugged her grandmother tight, forcing herself to stay collected. "I love you, Grams. So much."

The old woman looked up into her face, raising a wrinkled hand to her cheek. "I know, dearie. If your mother was here she would be so proud of the brave, strong, beautiful woman you have become." The old woman paused, clearing her throat. "What you are doing is remarkable. I just pray that you don't regret it."

Katara tried to smile. "I know what I am doing, Grams."

"Just remember that everyone here loves you with everything they have. You may be leaving, but you will always have a place here in our hearts."

Katara kissed her grandmother's cheek and pulled away before the tears in her eyes managed to seep out. They shared a smile, and then Grams stepped back and motioned for her grandson to come over. She stepped away while the two siblings stared at one another.

Sokka couldn't even try to smile. "Please, Katara, don't do this," he begged.

"Sokka, don't start. We've already talked about this, I have to. It's for the best."

"That man is a _monster_, Katara," he argued desperately. "You can't marry him. Please."

Katara looked her brother in the eye, willing herself to be strong. "What would you have me do, then, Sokka? You know what would happen if I didn't volunteer. Rather me then her."

Sokka looked at her hopelessly. "But…"

"I'm tougher than Yue. She would die, if she was forced into this. But I can handle this. For her. For you." Katara shook her head. "But not just for you. For everyone, Sokka. For both the Water Tribes. With this I can buy the Tribes time. Happiness."

"But for how long?" Sokka hissed, keeping his voice down so they wouldn't be overheard.

"Long enough." Katara's tone was final. "Sokka, please, do this for me. Let me go. Marry Yue and be happy for as long as you can. Give the Water Tribes a chance. I'm going no matter what, at least make it mean something."

Katara stood up on tip-toe and kissed her brother's cheek. "I love you. Tell Yue I said goodbye." She hugged her brother tight, and he embraced her back fiercely, clenching his eyes shut. Finally they parted. "I love you," she repeated, then turned fled.

Zuko watched from the ship's railing as the girl that was to be married to her father said her goodbyes. The tension between her and her brother was obvious, even to an outsider like himself. He narrowed his eyes as they whispered angrily to each other. What could they be talking about? Her brother looked angry and…almost guilty? It went without saying that no one wanted her to leave, but he seemed strangely adamant about it.

"Spying, are we?" Iroh said amusedly.

Zuko looked away from the two. "I'm trying to figure out what they're talking about."

Iroh shrugged. "Just the usual goodbyes, no doubt. No big brother likes to see his little sister growing up and leaving."

Zuko was quite for a moment, but he couldn't stop himself. "I didn't realize she would be so young," he said abruptly.

His uncle's face clouded momentarily. Quietly, he said, "Yes, well, I didn't either."

They were quiet, both thinking about the situation but unwilling to say anything, lest they be overheard. Eventually Iroh cleared his throat and said cheerily, "I do like her though. She's been rather reserved, but I can tell she has quiet the personality. It'll be fun getting to know her during the weeks we travel back to the palace.

Zuko watched as Katara boarded the ship, her face stormy. Fun, indeed.

**And there you have it. Please, after months of not writing anything, I really would LOVE reviews to let me know what you think. Sharing is caring, remember.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright, second chapter. Have at it, let me know what you think.**

XXXXX

_Katara glanced at her brother, who hadn't moved from his spot in the past hour. Curious, she asked, "Soka, what are you doing?"_

_ He glanced up at her and smiled, stretching out his arms over his head and letting out a groan of relief. "I'm almost done with it. Think Yue will like it?"_

_ "Like what?" Katara leaned over his shoulder. In his gloved hand sat a pendant of carved bone, a delicate design etched into it. Soka smiled with pride at the look on his sister's face. "Soka…it's beautiful," she breathed, touching her own necklace given to her by her mother. "Does this mean…?"_

_ "Yeah, I'm going to propose to her after the war meeting."_

_ Katara met her brother's eyes, and she couldn't stop the giant grin spreading on her face. "Oh, Soka, that's wonderful!" She hugged her brother, laughing, eyes tearing up with happiness._

_xxxxx_

"_Sir, a messenger from the Fire Nation is here. He says he bears news straight from the Fire Lord."_

_ Murmurs broke out across the room, people glancing around, confused._

_ "Let him in."_

_ A soldier in Fire Nation uniform strode into the room. Men all around the table tensed, glaring at their enemy. The soldier seemed undaunted, face a perfect mask of emotionless, and opened the scroll in his hands. Reading aloud, he announced, "The Great Fire Lord Ozai, son of the late Fire Lord Azulan and late Fire Lady Ilah, brother to Iroh, father of…" He continued on, but Katara and Soka, who were sitting next to each other, shared glances and rolled their eyes at this pompous display. "…is mercifully offering to cease all attacks, remove all soldiers from the battlefield—"_

_ Everyone around the war room sat up straight, now interested. Never had Ozai offered anything of the sort, but what was the catch?_

_ "—in return for the hand of the Water Tribe Princess in marriage."_

_ A ripple of shock rushed through the room. Katara stared at the soldier, and then whipped her head to look at Soka. He sat rigid in his chair, fists clenched, looking as if he was about to throw up. Katara then followed his gaze to Yue, whose face had lost all color. Everyone in the war room was staring at her, waiting for a reaction. Even her father, who was sitting by her side, looked too shocked to say anything. Yue glanced down, looking absolutely terrified. She licked her lips, glanced at Soka._

_ Katara immediately saw what Yue was thinking. She had a duty to her people. How could she put her personal happiness before thousands of lives? She had to agree. Yue swallowed, then raised her gaze up to the soldier._

_ Katara burst from her chair. "I accept!" she announced, standing up tall, staring down the solider. "Tell Ozai that Katara, Princess of the Southern Water Tribe, accepts his offer. I will agree to marriage if I find the terms agreeable."_

_ Only the Fire Nation soldier moved. He turned to Katara and bowed deeply. All the others in the room were dead quiet, staring at Katara, absorbing what was happening. Sokka and her father, both on either side of her, openly gaped at her._

_ Katara didn't look at the soldier. She kept her eyes on Yue, who was watching her with eyes full of tears. She bowed her head for a moment, and then looked back at Katara. "Thank you," she mouthed silently, a single tear slipping down her cheek. Katara gave her a small, sad smile back._

_xxxx_

Katara eyed her accommodations with distaste. It was spacious enough, sure, and provided all the necessities, but it didn't look at all inviting. Cold, metal walls, the eerie red light—it reminded Katara of Firebenders themselves, and that wasn't a good thing. Cold hearted, cruel, and unyielding, the whole lot of them.

"As you can see, the crew has placed your personal items beside the bed. Let me know if you needing anything else," the captain behind Katara said. "I'll be on deck."

"Thank you," she murmured, not looking at him as he left. Jee was polite enough, but he was still fought for the Fire Nation.

Katara sighed. She had originally thought that she could merely spend her time in her cabin, but if she stayed in here it would likely drive her insane. Looked like she would just have to bite the bullet and actually socialize with the crew.

Being out in the open felt much better than confined inside the claustrophobic corridors of the ship. Katara took a deep breath of air, closing her eyes. At least on this journey she would be with the sea, always able to draw from it for strength.

"Ah, there's our Lady of the Water Tribe!" Katara blinked and saw Iroh waving at her from across the deck. "We were worried that you were hiding from us!"

Katara couldn't help herself, she liked the man, Fire Nation soldier and all. It was impossible not to, with all his simple charisma and happiness just oozing off him. Smiling, she walked over. "What are you up to?"

"We, my lady, were just discussing that. I believe, since it your first night aboard, we should greet you with a night of entertainment. My nephew here, however," Iroh elbowed Zuko playfully in the ribs, making him scowl, "doesn't approve."

"What sort of entertainment?" Katara asked, curious.

"It's music night," Iroh told her. "The crew loves to get together and perform. I'm certain they would be happy for the chance to play for you."

"Oh?" Katara was surprised. She certainly hadn't expected that. "That, um, sounds interesting."

Iroh apparently took that as encouragement, and in no time at all the available crew was out on the deck, some sporting their own instruments. Iroh himself had somehow procured a tsunagi horn. The crew assembled in a haphazard circle, settled down, and began to play.

Katara was amazed. Not by their skill—no, definitely not that—but at what they were doing. Music was…just something she didn't associate with the Fire Nation. It was such a leisurely pastime…a form of art, not of war. She watched as Iroh happily bawled out lyrics and the crew worked their instruments. They looked content, happy.

This didn't go with her idea of the cold-hearted Fire Nation at all. As Katara listened, mesmerized, she began to feel slightly ashamed of herself. It was true that the Fire Nation did horrible things, but it was still made up of many different people. And to throw all of them in a pile listed "EVIL" was close-minded. Just as there were bad people from the Water Tribes, there could be good people from the Fire Nation.

A small, fragile hope blossomed in Katara. Not for her, she knew that there was no hope for her—but for the future. Perhaps this generation would be ruled by war, but Ozai wasn't immortal. He would eventually grow old and have to give up his rule. Maybe then the world would be able to heal after that.

Her gaze drifted over to Zuko. He stood apart from the crew, looking surly and annoyed. For the second time that day Katara stared at him, assessing. It was hard to imagine this boy—her own age!—at the head of the Fire Nation. She knew next to nothing about him. Was he as power-crazy and destructive as his father? Or would he break the cycle of violence his father had created?

As if heard her thoughts, Zuko looked up and met her gaze. His look was challenging, just as assessing as hers had been. Katara did not look away and the two studied one another. It was a strange relationship they were entering, neither sure of who held the power.

The moment was broken as Iroh finished his song with a flourish of the tsunagi horn, dipping his head in mock bows to his audience. Katara turned her attention back to him and smiled, clapping along with the others. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Zuko turn and leave the deck.

"Well, Water Princess? What did you think?" Iroh asked.

Katara grinned. "I was pleasantly surprised."

"Well then, why don't you join in the next one?"

The crew chuckled as Katara waved her hands and said, "You know what, I think it's time for me to turn in."

xxxx

"_What the hell were you thinking, agreeing like that? We need time to discus this, and you just ran along and accepted the offer?"_

_ Katara held her head high. "What was I supposed to do, sit there gaping like all of you?"_

_ The Northern Water Tribe Chief glared at her. "That isn't the point. You have no idea what—"_

_ "Don't you think I know it's a trap?" Katara demanded. "It's Ozai, of course it's a trap! We all know that he was talking about Yue, not me. He wanted her for a reason, and now he can't have her."_

_ Yue glanced up at her from the shelter in Sokka's arms. "But Katara, we still don't understand his plan."_

_ Katara shook her head. "It doesn't matter. If we had refused, the Emperor would have retaliated. At least now we have time to figure out what to do. It will take time for negations to be worked out. Hopefully the Fire Nation will cease attacks for now."_

_ "We have no promise of that, other than Ozai's word," one of the general's sneered. "That hardly counts for anything."_

_ Katara clenched her jaw. "Yes, I _know _that. But there's a chance he keep to his promise, at least for a while. We all know that this is some sort of trap. But so long as we agree to his terms, we have time to prepare and figure out what is going on."_

_ "At what expense? Your freedom—your life?" Katara's father demanded, making her flinch. He grabbed her arms and forced her to face him. "I already lost your mother to the Fire Nation—I won't watch my daughter being handed over to the enemy."_

_ Katara was trembling inside, but she squared her shoulders and shook off her father's grip. "You can't stop me. If I don't go, the Fire Nation will continue attacking. More husbands will lose their wives. More children will lose their mothers. People will continue to die. Any time our people spend in peace will be worth it—I don't care if it's only a week that Ozai holds to his word, it's a week that families can spend together without fear of being ripped apart."_

_xxxx_

Katara woke up to the bleary light of dawn filtering in through her window. She sat up, stiff from sleeping in a strange bed, then got up and dressed.

There was little activity going on that she saw as she walked down the corridor. The galley was just about empty, but Iroh was sitting down at a table eating from a bowl in front of him. Katara walked over and sat across from him.

"Lady Katara, what a pleasure to see your face first thing in the morning," Iroh smiled. "Would you like a bowl? The cook makes a lovely almond and peach porridge."

Katara shook her head. "Thank you, but no. I was hoping to speak to you."

"Oh? About what?"

Katara took his open face, debating if she was right for trusting him. She knew little about him, but already she liked the man. She could sense he had a good heart. "Serious matters. Relationships between our people. What's to come in the future."

Iroh nodded, his face becoming serious. "I see. Why don't you join me in my quarters." He pushed aside his bowl and led Katara to his room. Once he had closed the door behind him, he turned to her. "You may speak freely, without worry. There are no eavesdroppers here." His demeanor brightened, and he motioned towards a table in the middle of the room. "Please, make yourself comfortable. I'll be happy to answer any questions you have."

Katara thanked him and sat down, folding her legs underneath her. Iroh picked up a tray and set it down in front of her, then settled down himself. "Now, tell this old man your worries."

Katara was silent for a moment as Iroh picked up a kettle and poured water into a pair of cups. Her eyes traveled around the room, taking in the large Fire Nation tapestry over his bed. "You love your country, don't you, General?"

"Iroh, if you please. And yes, I do love my country, very much."

Katara sighed. "This is very strange for me. All this time, the Fire Nation has been faceless, made of soldiers who threatened my people. But now…I'm realizing that the Fire Nation is made of individual people who have their own lives and families."

Iroh nodded, giving her a small smile. "It must be very confusing for you. War is a very confusing time." He offered her a cup. "Have some tea. It's my own recipe." Katara took it, blowing steam off the top. Iroh continued. "My people love their country. In school they are taught that it is the greatest in history, and are told that what our army is doing is to share our greatness with the world." Katara didn't interrupt him, but she could tell that he didn't completely agree. "I can understand your feelings towards my people, but you must understand, not all of them are soldiers." He met her eyes. "Many of them are peaceful citizens, who lead honest lives and love their families. They do not see the destruction on the front lines. They do not hear the gristly war stories, they are only told about great victories over our barbarian enemies.

"I know what the other nations think of us. And I know how much you must hate my country. But please, if only for your own sake, try to accept them. This…_marriage," _he said the word reluctantly, "that you have agreed to will only be harder if you believe that all my people are monsters."

_No, only a few, _Katara thought, though she didn't dare say it. Ozai was front and center in her mind. Thinking that she should respond, she said, "Thank you. It does help me when I remember that the Fire Nation is made of people, too, just like my own."

Iroh watched her. Still, her unhappiness was evident. It twisted his heart to see such a beautiful young woman looking like she had lost everything.

After a slight hesitation, he reached across the table to gently touch her hand. When Katara looked at him, surprised, he said, "This will also be hard on you if you try to keep all your feelings inside. I understand the position you're in, and that you don't want to show weakness to your enemy, but please…no one on this ship expects you to be happy about this. And this old man will soon be your brother. It will cause you no harm to be honest in front of me."

Katara blinked back sudden tears. His generosity meant more to her than she could of have ever imagined. It looked like she might have a least one ally in this trip to hell. Katara squeezed his hand. "Thank you."

XXXXX

**Before any of you mention it, I want to point out that Katara isn't quite herself for a reason. She's struggling to keep her opinions and personality from the others because she isn't sure what kind of impression she wants to make on them yet.**

**And before you mention this also, I'm aware there's no ZuzuKatara going on yet. All in due time, my pretties.**


	3. Chapter 3

**In this chapter Katara and Zuko finally begin to show their true colors. I think I'm keeping them in character, but let me know if you disagree.**

**XXXX**

Zuko stepped out of his quarters just as the door to Iroh's cabin opened. He opened his mouth to greet his uncle, but stopped as he saw Katara slip into the corridor. She didn't notice him, head down, and turned down the hallway. Zuko watched her as she walked away, eyes narrowed.

What had that been about?

He stood there for a few moments more, then realized it was foolish to question what his uncle was doing. If he had seen her slipping out of one of the _crew member's _cabin, then he would have a problem. But no, the idea was laughable with Katara and his uncle. Knowing Iroh, they were probably just having tea.

He walked by just as Iroh was opening the door. He glanced in and, yes, there was his uncle's tea tray on the table.

Zuko greeted him, "Uncle."

"Hello, Zuko. Are you looking forward to our port stop in Yi Chang?"

Instead of answering, Zuko said, "I saw the Water Princess leaving your cabin. What were you talking about?"

"The Fire Nation. I fear she will have a hard time adjusting," Iroh admitted, looking down the corridor that Katara had left by. "I was merely offering her my advice." He looked back at Zuko. "I believe that we should both do our best to make her as comfortable as possible."

"Comfortable?" Zuko snorted. "I'm not here to babysit and wipe her nose. She had better get used to hardship if she wants to join our family."

Iroh watched unhappily as Zuko stalked off. He had been worried about his nephew and the bride-to-be. Zuko didn't have much experience around women. The only ones he met were Fire Nation Soldiers—who he didn't socialize with—or Fire Nation Noblewomen—who he didn't socialize with. There was Azula…Iroh sighed. She was the strongest female figure in Zuko's life, and as much as Iroh hated to admit about his own family, she wasn't a good influence on him. If only Ursa was still…Iroh closed his eyes. That gentle woman was never suited for a marriage to his brother.

He could only hope that Katara would fare better.

xxxx

Katara stood on the deck, doing her best to stay out of the way while the crew members dashed around securing the ship at the port they had docked at. Yi Chang, one of the crew had told her. Katara had never been there—it was controlled by the Fire Nation. From what she understood, they were trying to turn it into a stable colony, but the only presence she could see from the Fire Nation were the soldiers. All the other people she could see from her perch were dressed like Earth Nation.

Katara clenched the railing as she watched the people on the dock scuttle about. She could tell by the buildings that this had once been a prosperous place, perhaps even happy. The warehouses and storefronts that she could see were large and had ornate architecture—but the walls were now crumbling in some places, paint peeling off others. The fisherman and work people walking below were wearing clothes that had been well-made, but were now dirty and fraying, patched and torn in places, hanging off their thin frames. The children in the streets were filthy and barefoot and scrawny.

That was enough to anger Katara, but what set her off was when she examined the soldiers. Their uniforms were immaculate, even shining. They certainly didn't look like they had missed a single meal in months. And look, right over there were soldiers eating a basket of fruit right in front of a group of children. The kids' expressions reminded Katara of an animal waiting desperately for some food to be dropped so they could snatch it off the ground.

Katara wanted to march right up to the two men and rip the basket from them—but she couldn't. No. She was to be the willing, demure bride of the Fire Lord. Any problems she caused would be an excuse for the Fire Lord to break his word about creating peace between their people. She watched the soldiers for a few moments more, then turned away, feeling sick.

She started when she found Zuko right in front of her. He registered her expression and frowned. "Is something wrong?"

"Prince Zuko, look at Yi Chang. What do you see?"

He narrowed his eyes at her for a second, then stepped up to the railing to cast his gaze over the village. Katara watched him closely as he examined the scene below them. Finally he turned and looked back at her. "I see people from my nation doing their duty of sharing our supreme culture with the ignorant. The barbarians in this village are being taught of the proper way to live and are being saved from themselves."

Katara stared at him, then realized he believed every bit of what he said. Revulsion rose up in her throat. She had to get off this boat filled with these brainwashed people. Without saying another word, Katara pushed past him practically ran onto the docks.

Iroh had watched their exchange, and was alarmed when Katara ran off. He hurried up to Zuko, who was standing by the rail in bewilderment. "What did you say to her that was so upsetting?" he demanded.

Zuko scowled at his uncle. "Nothing. She's just crazy and ran off."

"Now is not the time, but when you get back I'm going to have to give you a long talk about women. Right now, the fiancée of the Fire Lord just ran off into a strange village she's unaccustomed with. I suggest you go after her and bring her back—and apologize for whatever you did."

xxxxx

Once Katara was out of sight of the ship, she slowed down. She didn't know the layout of the city, so she stayed on the docks, near the water, where she felt safe.

Walking in the away-from-Zuko direction, Katara sighed. Running away had been stupid. That wasn't how a bride should be acting. No doubt that damn prince thought she was insane—though she could argue the same about him. He had meant what he said sincerely!

Were all Fire Nation like that? Iroh didn't seem to believe that his people were warring with the rest of the world to share their superior culture, but Zuko did. How many other people in the Fire Nation were so blindly obedient to that mission? The thought frightened Katara.

She walked past several soldiers, each and every one making her skin crawl. Brainwashed, the whole lot of them. Couldn't they see the pain in front of them? And they thought these people were barbarians? Ignorant? The Earth Kingdom held so much wisdom, had produced so many great scholars over the centuries! Their culture was beautiful and sophisticated, not barbaric!

Katara stopped her determined march through the docks when she spotted a clearly pregnant woman with a baby strapped to her back, happily gurgling and mouthing on a toy. She was struggling to lift a basket of fish. Katara went to assist her, and as she hurried to the woman's side she noticed a circle of five soldiers sitting on the docks, playing with dice. They were all ignoring the woman's struggle. A flame of anger spat up within her, but she pushed it aside and placed a smile on her face as she lifted the basket, murmuring to the woman, "Here, let me help you."

The woman gave Katara a relieved smile. "Thank you, young lady. It's not so easy to get around anymore," she said, motioning to her stomach.

Katara laughed. "Here, let me carry this for you."

"Oh no, that won't be necessary. I can carry it myself—it's just the bending that causes a problem." The woman held out her arms for the basket.

"You're sure?" Katara asked uncertainly as she handed it over. "It won't be a problem…"

"Thank you, but no." The baby on the woman's back started to whimper, then cry loudly. The soldiers sitting nearby glanced up from their games to glare in their direction. The woman noticed and cleared her throat. "If you'll excuse me. I need to get him home." Katara winced as the baby's cries hit another pitch. She watched as the woman started off, then saw the toy the baby had been chewing on sitting on the wooden planks of the dock.

"Ma'am!" Katara called after her, crouching down to pick up the saliva covered toy. "You're boy dropped his pacifier!"

The woman turned around as the baby started to scream even louder. "Oh, thank you—"

"Hey, lady, shut the kid up!"

Katara and the woman turned to look at the circle of soldiers. One of them had gotten to his face and was scowling at the baby. The woman paled and hurried to Katara, grabbing the pacifier awkwardly with her already full hands. "I'm sorry, sir, my boy is teething," she apologized, moving to bow.

As she bent, fish from the basket spilled out. The woman stared in horror as the fish flopped over and landed on the soldier's feet. "Sir—Please, I apologize—" she started, then winced as the baby began to howl.

"You stupid woman—" the soldier seethed, kicking the fish away from him. His companions rose to their feet. "I'm going to give you a lesson in manners!" He rose a hand. Just as he moved to strike the woman, Katara took action. She jumped in front of the woman, swinging out an arm to knock aside the soldier's strike.

It certainly wasn't an impressive feat—Katara hadn't even used her water bending—but everyone around her froze. People that had been passing by the street, keeping their heads down and pretending not to see the woman get abused, were now standing stock still with their mouths wide open. The soldiers behind their companion looked amazed. The soldier that had Katara had engaged stared at her with wide eyes.

He quickly dropped his shock, his eyes glinting over with ice. "You dare touch a Fire Nation soldier? You little bitch!"

Katara stared right into his eyes, a vicious smile appearing on her face. Her body was thrumming with hardly controlled fury. There wasn't a thought in her head about her promise to the Fire Lord. This man had just tried to hurt a pregnant woman and her baby—she was going to _destroy_ him. "Ma'am, I suggest you go home now. I have business to handle."

xxxxx

Zuko scowled when he saw a crowd of people gathered on the dock. Damn it, what the hell had that stupid girl done now? He pushed through the people, then stopped when he saw what was happening. Katara was standing between a woman and five Fire Nation soldiers, and she was obviously engaging the lead soldier in a fight!

Swearing, Zuko shoved more people aside. He had to stop the soldiers before they killed her. He opened his mouth to shout out an order just as the soldier swung at Katara with a flaming hand, but the words were drowned out by the gasps of the spectators as they watched what happened.

xxxxx

Katara ducked under the soldiers arm, feeling the heat pass over her neck, and quickly took a spinning step back so she would have room. As the man charged at her, hand cocked back, Katara called upon the water beneath her feet.

She propelled the water with so much force it smashed aside the wood planking as it surged up to the soldier, punching him high into the air. He gave a strangled scream as he flew over the heads of his fellow soldiers, then splashed into the water past the dock.

People in the crowd gasped, hands to their mouths. The soldiers stared at the ripples left by their friend, then turned back to Katara. As one, they attacked.

Zuko finally got a hold of himself and moved to stop this. While taking out that one soldier was impressive, surely it was just a fluke, there was no way she could take on four at—

Katara threw up a wall of water to shield herself for the balls of flame, then let it drop as she rushed forward, jumping through the steam between her and the soldiers. She slammed both her feet into the chest of one while simultaneously punching jets of water at the two on either side of him, sending all three splashing off the dock. She landed and turned to face the final soldier. "Think you're brave enough to take me on your own? I wonder how tough you are without your friends backing you up."

He snarled and shot fireball after fireball at her. Katara made a show of deflecting every single one, smirking at how easy it was. Most of the people watching scattered, afraid of getting hit by a stray shot. Katara gathered water around her, around and around, then flung it at the final soldier.

A flare of fire intercepted it just before it struck him. Katara spun around, already gathering water by her side, looking around for her next opponent. She hesitated when she saw Zuko standing on the dock in front of her, hand still raised and smoking.

Katara drew herself up, unsure of what would happen next. Before all this, she wasn't even sure if Zuko could be considered as an ally. Now, after she had attacked his people, what would he do?

The soldier on the dock looked at Zuko and immediately recognized him. "Majesty!" he stuttered, then dropped to one knee. Katara glanced at him, watching as the rest of the soldiers she had made bath toys of drag themselves onto the dock. They all spotted Zuko and took a pose mirroring their companion, heads bowed, dripping onto the dock.

"Explain yourselves!" Zuko barked, stalking forward. Katara thought he was talking to her, but he strode right by her to loom over the men.

"Prince Zuko, this girl attacked us—"

"A single girl attack five men? You're lying."

"She intervened while we were disciplining a citizen—"

"You were about to strike a defenseless, pregnant woman!" Katara cried.

Zuko glanced sharply over his shoulder at her. "My lady," he said through gritted teeth. "It is my duty to reprimand my men—"

"Men!" Katara cried. "Hardly! Filthy beasts, just like—" she stopped, realizing she was about to insult the Fire Lord in front of his son and people. Demure, she remembered. She was supposed to be acting polite, playing nice.

Her face screwed up as she struggled to hold her tongue. Her people. Insult the Fire Lord and she would put her people in danger.

Zuko watched her, and Katara knew he had a clear idea of what she had almost said. He gave her a look that said _we'll settled this later _and turned his attention to the men kneeling in front of him. "I'll be reporting this to your superior officer. He'll hear of you bullying the people you were sent here to teach—and that all five of you couldn't control a single water bender." Again his eyes flicked over to Katara, and she straightened at the idea that she should have been subdued by these buffoons.

The head soldier shot up, fists clenched. "Sir, all due respect—but this is a water bender! Our enemy! Why are you protecting her when she attacked your men?"

Zuko slid a cool gaze over him. "This water bender that you just assaulted is engaged to the Fire Lord. You just tried to kill the future bride of Ozai himself."

Zuko took Katara's arm and strode away, ignoring the horrified looks of the uniformed men behind him and the astounded stares of the villagers.

xxxxx

"Please let go of me," Katara said through clenched teeth once they were around the corner.

Zuko released her arm, only to turn and step right up to her. Alarmed by sudden invasion of personal space, Katara stepped back, but Zuko followed up, making sure they were nose to nose. "I could have you thrown in prison for what you just pulled back there," he seethed.

She glared right back at him. "But you won't. I'm the 'future bride of Ozai himself,' remember?" Her voice dripped disgust and self-mockery.

"You attacked Fire Nation soldiers."

"That _soldier," _Katara used the word mockingly, "was about to slap a pregnant woman across the face because her baby was crying. If stopping that is enough to go to prison for, then I would rather be behind bars than out with your _civilized _people."

Zuko swelled with fury, wanting to slap her across the face himself. Never had he had anyone insulted his country so blatantly to his face. Only her position kept him from laying a hand on her.

Katara's skin crawled at the close quarters with this monster. She wanted to choke him. Only his position kept her from acting on her desire.

The charged stare between them lasted a few moments longer, and seemingly they acknowledged at the same time that glaring at each other would get them nowhere. Zuko took a step back and cleared his throat. _You're a prince, _he thought. _Act like it. Be courteous._

"I was surprised when I saw you fighting. You managed to take out five full grown men without any problems."

"What, shocked I can handle myself?" Katara said, somewhat childishly, and immediately the fury that had just cooled between them threatened to come back full force.

Zuko glared at her a moment, then forced out, "I was under the impression that women did not learn combative skills in the Water Tribes."

_You're supposed to be a polite guest, remember? He's making an effort to change the subject. _Katara looked down for a moment, letting out a calming breath and gathering her façade. "You're thinking of the Northern Tribe. Where I come from, we don't have such rules. If you can defend your home, you defend it, never mind gender."

Zuko nodded, turning away from her. "Good philosophy."

They began to walk together back to the ship, the tense and awkward mood following them. Katara and Zuko attempted to keep the forced conversation going, acting as if they hadn't just been a moment away from throttling each other. "In my country, women train alongside the men as well," Zuko offered.

"Do they?" Katara asked. She had never thought about it. "I must never have noticed. Under that armor you can't tell. Actually, now that I think about it, your soldiers are the only ones that use such heavy armor."

"Well, think about it—earth and water benders can manipulate their elements to create solid shields. Fire is difficult to maintain and can't take a constant shape."

Having found a topic they could both converse on, the words started coming easier and less forced as they continued to walk on. By the time they had returned to the ship, they were arguing over how Katara could've handled the five men earlier. "You keep forgetting I can't turn their fire against them, Zuko! And I admit that I used a lot of energy deflecting their shots, but it wasn't as if I was going to be in combat for an extended period of time, so my stamina didn't matter."

"You didn't know that. What if reinforcements had come? Then you'd wish you hadn't wasted so much time."

"If reinforcements came, I would probably retreat into the water, to be honest," Katara admitted. She saw Zuko smirk, and snarled, "But not because I couldn't handle them. Us fighting would destroy the dock and possibly hurt the villagers, maybe set the buildings on fire."

Zuko paused in their argument, looking at her oddly. "You actually take time to consider the bystanders' safety?"

"Of course! See, you're used to fighting in true battles where there's only your allies and your enemies on the field. When I defend my home, I have my patients and family to consider. You would probably be the same in a similar situation, I'm sure. I think everyone would be."

Another voice broke into their conversation. "Look at you two, arguing like age old veterans!"

Zuko and Katara turned from each other to see Iroh grinning at them. "Uncle?"

Iroh laughed and patted his nephew's shoulder. "It looks like you apologized and made up with her. Very good."

"Apologized?" Katara asked, glancing back at Zuko. "What for?"

If she had forgotten about why she had stormed off the ship this morning, Zuko wasn't going to remind her. "Nothing," he assured her. "Now, say you were in this situation, what would you do…?"

Iroh continued to smile as he watched the two young people argue over strategy and theory. Both of them were waving their hands in the air, jabbing their hands to make their point and shaking their heads. Quietly he chuckled to himself. Different sides of the same coin, they were.

Watching them for a little bit longer, his smile faltered. Something about the mood between them wasn't just that of two warriors comparing plans. An undercurrent ran in it, probably unnoticed by the two of them, but Iroh's experienced eye caught it. Surely not, he thought, as he saw Zuko's mouth quirk just a fraction of a smile as he watched Katara make her point.

"Something wrong, sir?" one of the crewmembers asked, breaking Iroh's concentration.

The old man shook his head. "No, simply glad my nephew has made a friend." The other man glanced at Katara and Zuko and agreed, then moved on. Iroh returned to watching them.

Whatever he thought he had seen was gone. It was probably never there to begin with, he assured himself.

**XXXXX**

**Building the chemistry between the two. They still hate each other, but slowly they're beginning to respect each other…sort of. It's my opinion that Katara and Zuko are very similar in personality, and it's only because they were brought up so differently that they keep clashing.**

**And yes, Iroh knows all. He's going to be giving Zuko 'The Talk' very soon.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Took forever, I know, but anyone who's been reading my stuff know that I always do. I had wanted to write longer chapters, but I felt that if I tried to make this longer it would take too long, and I need to give you guys something.**

**XXXXX**

Katara lay on her bed, staring at the dull metal ceiling above her. She was tired of being cooped up, but she didn't want to go back out and face the rest of the crew. She didn't want to face Iroh. And she certainly didn't want to face Zuko.

She didn't want to see them because…she was beginning to like them.

Well, perhaps not _like_. Even such a vague word as 'like' suggested too strong a connection to describe what she was feeling. But when she looked at them, the burning hatred and disgust wasn't as strong. Slowly, as time passed and she continued to discuss with them, her hatred began to fade. These people weren't the faceless enemies she—and her people—had been fighting all this time. Actually, they were, but they weren't. They weren't the inhuman, disfigured monsters Katara used to visualize when she was child. They weren't cruel to her, like they were _supposed_ to be. They weren't bumbling, savage thugs who only thought of violence and power—heck, Iroh spent nearly all his time playing Pai Sho! He wasn't the uncivilized brute her people made him out to be.

Katara clung to her pillow and clenched her eyes shut. For whatever reason, she wanted to hold on to the ideas and opinions she had been brought up with, even when they were beginning to shine not quite true. Water was supposed to be the element of change, but Katara didn't want to accept it. She felt as if the tide inside her was trying to sweep her off her feet and drag her out into a big, deep ocean of the unknown.

There was safety in what she used to think. She didn't have to become friends with or enjoy her company when they were all immoral monsters. But, if they were actual people, just like her…well, then she would have to put herself in a vulnerable spot and throw away everything she knew. She would have to accept that these 'monsters' that her people were fighting with for generations weren't as evil as she believed.

The small part in Katara's mind that always told her what she didn't want to hear, but needed to, was whispering to her now. She believed she was being heroic, taking Yue's place and agreeing to sign her life away to the Fire Nation. What if she didn't do it for Yue's sake, but so people would see what a brave thing she did and immortalize her after she was gone, turn her into a legend? Now, if the Fire Nation wasn't as monstrous as she thought, she wasn't making such a sacrifice, now, was she?

Katara sat up and tossed the pillow away. That _wasn't true. _She may be proud—alright, there was no question in that—but she had not done this for herself. And there _were_ plenty of awful Fire Nation citizens, like the soldiers she had fought with in Yi Chang. And Zuko could be brutally cold-hearted when he talked sometimes. And Katara refused to think for a single second that the Ozai was deep down a good man.

But…there were bad people everywhere. Fire benders, earth benders, even water benders. There were bound to be thieves and murderers in all societies. Just as there were saints and truly good-hearted people.

Katara closed her eyes. No one was perfect. There were plenty of qualities in herself she didn't like to admit—her pride, for one. Zuko was just as proud as she was, if not more. Perhaps he had doubted what he had grown up with, just as she did, but his pride kept him from questioning himself.

"There I go again, getting all serious," Katara muttered, throwing her legs over the side of the bed. The air in the cabin was getting much too philosophical for her liking.

XXXXX

The air out on deck was much better. It carried the scent of the sea and a slight chill up to her as she walked across to the railing, reminding her of home. She smiled despite herself as she rested her elbows on the edge and stared out over the water.

The ship was slicing through the water at a steady, unrushed pace, and Katara watched the moon's reflection shimmer and jump and chase across the waves. It was completely full, and she could feel her bending skills thrumming inside her, pulsing right along with her heart beat. She took her eyes off the reflection for a moment, closing her eyes and enjoying the feeling.

Katara wasn't sure when she made the decision to move, but her arms lifted and pulled the water up over the side of the ship and around her, eyes still closed. Maintaining a constant ribbon, she skipped out to the middle of the deserted deck and rose her hands to the sky, lifting her face. When she opened her eyes again, all the water she had gathered floated above her head in a sphere, mimicking the moon above it. Katara sucked in a breath, and the water contracted, tightening into a nearly solid ball. She released the breath slowly, and the water expanded into a thin disk over her head.

She went through all the basic movements required for water bending, making sure to take her time and hone every tiny detail—her stance, her breathing pattern, the shape of the water, it all had to be perfect before she moved on. After a few minutes, she dropped the water over the side and shook out her hands and arms and legs, confident she had warmed herself up. Now came the fun part.

XXXXX

Zuko watched from up in the tower, mesmerized. He had volunteered for the night shift, expecting an uneventful night alone with his thoughts while he kept the ship on course, and at first had been annoyed by Katara's unexpected appearance on deck. Now he would have to keep an eye on her as well…but then she had started bend, and he had been intrigued.

As a soldier, he had never given much interest in his enemies tactics besides how to defend and counter them. He had never seen water bending outside of battle, so when he realized she was going to practice he locked the wheel in position (really, there was no point standing there holding it, the water was calm enough that the ship wouldn't be turned off course) and moved up to the window for a better view.

He watched with narrowed eyes as he studied the form of his enemies as she drew the sea water around her and up. He saw how easily she kept it into a stable form. A fire bender wouldn't be able to sustain a flame like that—without any fuel, fire would go out. A bender could continue adding more flame, but only from his own body's energy. And it would never take to such a stable shape.

He continued to analyze her movements, blatantly staring. His observation was cut short when Katara stopped, dropping the water to the deck.

Zuko was surprised to find himself disappointed. He had enjoyed watching her, and as she shook out her arms and stretched her back he pondered the idea of asking her to demonstrate—what was she doing?

Lighting fast, Katara had summoned a much larger amount of water. Quick movements from her and it separated into four different ice structures, roughly the sizes and shapes of men. And then she really began to move.

She jumped onto the railing of the boat and ran down the length of the ship, creating a whip of water as she went. When she was just about to pass one of the ice-men, she jumped off, flipping as she went. Zuko realized she was using her entire body to bend the water, and as she landed the water swung and lashed out—cleanly slicing off what could have been the statue's head. Amazed and slightly alarmed, Zuko stared openmouthed as she dashed on towards the next one, suddenly dropping and tumbling to the side (dodging an imaginary attack, perhaps?), slicing her arm out low to the ground, then springing to her feet and slicing her arm the opposite way. The ice-man trembled, then slowly slid apart and crashed to the deck in three pieces. By the time Zuko had registered what she had done and found her again, the third ice-man was down and Katara was using the water that it had consisted off to crash into the fourth, knocking it over the rail and back into the sea.

Katara stood for a few moments in the middle of the deck, breathing hard, seeming uncomfortable with the sudden stop she had made. She looked at the puddles and ice chunks around her feet, pushing her hair back behind her shoulders. After a few seconds of catching her breath, she gathered the mess and pushed it to the side of the ship to run out of the drainage holes.

The clapping noise behind her made her nearly jump out of her skin. She whirled around and saw Zuko standing by the tower ladder. "That was quite a performance you just gave," he said, watching her with unreadable eyes.

"I thought I was alone," Katara said guardedly, unsure of what he was thinking. Was he alarmed that the girl who was going to marry into his family could fight like that? Or did he think she was showing off?

"That was quite impressive," he said in the same tone, which could have been mocking, or complimentary, or neither.

"Thank you," she replied tightly.

He leaned against the rail and eyed the last few remaining chunks of ice that were too large for the drainage holes. "All those bits and pieces…you took it easy on the soldiers back in Yi Chang, didn't you?"

"Well, it's a little easier when they don't fight back," Katara said, easing up a little. He didn't sound angry.

"Can't deny that," he said quietly. "What are you doing out here so late, anyway? I have the night watch, but why are you out of bed?"

Katara shrugged, jerking her head up. "The moon's full. You know, the whole fire benders like the day, water benders like the night thing?"

Zuko glanced up. "I hadn't noticed."

Silence stretched between them. Katara was just thinking of excusing herself when Zuko asked, "Where did you learn to fight like that? I thought…well, before Yi Chang, I had no idea you could fight. All the stories about you only spoke of your healing magic. And I was under the impression women didn't…"

"There's stories about me?" Katara asked, surprised. "What on earth about?"

Zuko opened and closed his mouth. The tales he had heard of from his fellow soldiers, and the jokes from the crew on the journey to gather her, had been mostly about her beauty—and her personality. Jokes had been made about how she couldn't have possibly be a water bender, because her personality was as fiery as the next Fire Nation woman. Women from his country often were proud of their loud opinions and personalities, compared to what they considered the 'quiet and serene' Water Tribe girls. They had earned their spots besides men on the front lines, while their uncultured enemies forced their women to stay home. Finally he hedged, "Like I said, your healing abilities. You're supposed to be one of the greatest alive, or so the legends say."

Katara snorted. "'Legends?' Hardly. The reason you didn't hear about me fighting is because I was always kept behind the lines to tend to the wounded. It was more important to keep my people alive than…" she trailed off, then quickly changed the subject. "You are right, though, about females from the Water Tribe. Northern, anyway. My smaller Southern Tribe wasn't picky about who we had to protect our village…but in the Northern it's forbidden."

Zuko watched her face, could see the mixed emotion behind her eyes, part pride, part anger. "Then how did you learn? Who taught you?"

"Master Pakku."

Zuko recognized the name, and was impressed. He had never met him face to face, but all the stories about _him _were quiet detailed—a master of his art, with the disposition of an angry Saber-tooth Moose-lion.

Katara smirked at his expression, pride shining through. "You've heard of him. He refused to teach me when we first met, but I changed his mind."

Zuko gave her a look, disbelieving. "You changed Master Pakku's mind? Impossible."

"It's true. I challenged him to a duel. At first he didn't want to accept it…he didn't even want to acknowledge my existence. But I got him to fight me."

"And you won?" Zuko demanded, amazed.

Katara laughed and admitted, "No, not even close. He could have destroyed me, if I was a true enemy. But I rattled his cage, enough for him to accept I was worth his time. Women aren't just for marrying and having children."

She said this last part looking directly at him. Zuko raised his hands. "Don't look at me like that. I know full well what women can do. My sister Azula is one of the fiercest people I know, right alongside my uncle and my father."

_His father. _It was the first time either of them had mentioned the Fire Lord. Katara looked sharply away. Fierce. That's how he described him, as well as his uncle and his sister. His family. The one she was going to marry into when this journey came to an end.

Zuko coughed into his fist loudly, having realized what he said. A painful silence stretched, neither of them looking at each other. He tried to think of some way to properly change the subject. "So—"

"Excuse me," Katara said, and swiftly left.

"Katara!" Zuko called after her, but she was gone. He stared after her, then turned his gaze angrily over the water. Letting out a frustrated sigh he turned around and climbed back up the observation tower ladder to finish his shift.

XXXXX

The next day deck hands were scrambling around, preparing to dock at a port they had arrived at. Katara watched from an out-of-the-way spot, arms crossed and leaning against the cool metal behind her. Zuko and Iroh were both moving around on deck, assisting their crew.

Katara felt a flush crawl up her face as she looked at him. She was embarrassed by her behavior the previous night. So childish! To basically run away like that…and what he said wasn't even all that insulting, or upsetting, or _anything_. Just a passing mention of his father, and Katara hightailed it.

She wondered if she was obligated to apologize. What she had done wasn't polite. Or perhaps she should pretend it never happened? Zuko didn't seem like he would care much about political protocol. Apologizing would just make everything even more awkward, when she might just be blowing what she did out of proportion.

The crew had finished docking, all lines tied taunt and secure, boarding ramp lowered. Iroh spotted Katara and walked over. "Lady Katara , my dear. Are you all set to see the port?"

Katara smiled. "Why, going to keep an eye on me so I start a bar fight?" she joked.

Iroh chuckled. "I merely wanted to spend my time shopping with a beautiful lady by my side."

Her smile grew wider at the compliment. "While I would love going with you, I think I'll stay on board."

The older man frowned. "By yourself? All of the crew will be out and about, besides Jee, and he isn't very good at conversation." He cast his gaze around and it fell on his nephew. "I know. Zuko!" he called. "Come here, please."

Zuko walked over, if a little hesitantly. "What is it?"

"Could you keep Lady Katara company? It would be impolite to leave her all by herself."

Zuko glanced at Katara, and the awkwardness from the previous night springing back full force. He looked at his uncle. "She'll have Jee. And if you're so worried about her, why don't you stay?"

"Zuko! Don't be surly, you should be happy to spend time with such a lady. And I have a friend here in port that I promised I would see."

Arguing would have been rude, especially in front of Katara. Reluctantly he agreed, and Iroh happily vacated the ship, leaving the two alone on deck. The captain must have been somewhere in the bowels of the ship.

An uncomfortable staring match had started, and Katara did her best to dispel the mood. "Your uncle's quite the flirt, isn't he?"

Zuko groaned, covering his face with his hand. "He's as subtle as a splash of ice-water in the face."

Katara smiled. "He's not too bad. It's sweet, actually." He snorted, shaking his head.

And just like that, the weirdness between them dissipated and they were chatting. Skirting around serious topics, of course, but discussing what Katara thought of the crewmembers, the other ports they would be stopping at.

Katara learned that Zuko had spent most of his life on the sea with his uncle, going from port to port, colony to colony to report on and organize warfronts and gather information. He told her about his favorite ports in the world and the people he had met. His life fascinated Katara, who had lived most of her life in the Southern Water Tribe, with the rare trip to the North to visit their sister tribe. He entertained her with tales of all the strange food he had eaten, of festivals he had seen, and of exotic animals Katara had never heard of.

Zuko stopped recounting his story when he saw a frown shadow her face. "What's wrong?"

Katara shrugged, waving her hand. "It's nothing, really. Just…I'm jealous. I feel so ignorant after hearing of all the places you've been, all the things you've seen."

Zuko paused, realizing that he had been a touch bragging. He had been excited to have someone so interested in what he had to say, usually all he had for company were sailors or soldiers older than him who had seen it all and done it all.

"Ignorant is the last word I would use to describe you," Zuko said, making Katara glance up. "And after this trip, you'll see more of the world than most people do in a lifetime." That made her give him a small smile. Bolstered, he tried to make her smile even bigger. "And you have a skill I would give almost anything to do."

"Yeah? What's that?" Katara asked.

Zuko looked at her plainly. "Your healing ability. That's one of the most amazing things I've ever seen in the entire world."

His sincerity truly surprised her. She never imagined that a fire bender—a prince!—could be jealous of something she could do. "Really?"

"Well, think about it. You save lives, Katara. With a single touch of your hand you can bring a man back from death." A bit of an exaggeration, and Katara would have told him so, but then he continued, with a suddenly somber tone. "I mean, all I can do is hurt people." He lifted one of his hands. "Destroy. Kill."

Katara was taken aback by his sudden mood change. Unsure of how to proceed, she said quietly, "Zuko…That's not true."

"You're just saying that," he said darkly, moving to turn away from her.

Katara grabbed his arm. "No! It's not. At Yi Chang you didn't hurt anyone. You helped me. You stopped those soldiers." He looked at her disbelievingly. "And I've seen the way your crew responds to you. They respect you. They wouldn't follow a man that can only cause pain like that."

Zuko blinked, then glanced down at her hand on his arm. He cleared his throat. "I'm sorry, this went to a place I didn't mean to." He pointedly stepped out of her grip.

Katara's face heated up, embarrassed by her sudden outburst supporting him. "Uh…"

Fortunately for both of them, an interruption came with the appearance of Iroh. "Hello!" They both turned to look at him as he walked up the ramp, carrying several boxes. "My friend sends her regards, and showed me many great shops. I'd be happy to bring you if you have changed your mind about staying on board."

Katara smiled, forcing herself to sound upbeat. "_Her _regards? This wouldn't happen to be a special lady friend of yours, would it, now?"

"A gentleman never tells," Iroh said with a wink.

XXXXX

**I was planning on writing this in, but the proper time hasn't come up yet in the plot and I want to let my readers know the slight differences between cannon Zuko and the one in this story.**

**I'm sure you notice mine is less angry at the world and more open. This is because Zuko was never banished by his father, with the ultimatum of catching the Avatar or never come back. He acts as a representative of the royal family, overseeing official business, with Iroh as his advisor and mentor. I'll be working on getting more backstory in, but I wanted to let my readers know before you take up pitchforks and cry "OOC!"**

**As always, reviews=love.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I had meant to make this longer, but the way the plot was working made it feel awkward. I made a mistake last time; I had meant to include the first scene of this chapter to the very end of the previous chapter, but, as you can tell, that didn't happen.**

**XXXXX**

"_Commander, I need you do something for me."_

"_Anything, my lord."_

"_That Water Tribe girl. She's become quite popular of late. I've heard rumors that she is being called the 'Champion of the Water People.'"_

"_I've heard the same, my lord. Only three days, and already stories of what she did at Yi Chang have spread just about everywhere. Even people of the Earth Kingdom have been talking about her."_

"_I can't have that. I can't have people rooting for her. I didn't expect that it would be easy to break her people's hope for her, but now I have to consider the Earth Kingdom? This wasn't supposed to happen. They were supposed to refuse this whole marriage, so I would have a reason to attack that my people would approve of—public support of the war has been fading. I never imagined that the Tribes would agree!"_

"_Had it been only Yue, I believe they would have refused, sir. She is the very symbol of the Northern Water Tribe, and while her father may be an adequate soldier, he is blinded by love for his daughter. He would have died before he allowed you to have her."_

"_That was the plan. I never imagined that someone else would volunteer! That Katara—she isn't even a true princess. But I could hardly take back my offer and say, 'sorry, I meant the other one?' Damn political jargon, I should have named her._

"…_but I can still make this work. What I called you here for, Zhou. Since things are not going according to plan, it's time to change the plan. I still need my people to approve of the war. They need to believe that I am trying to put aside our differences by reaching out for this arranged marriage. That I'm the good guy. I can't have that foul water girl be viewed in a positive light. We need to disgrace her."_

"_My lord? I don't understand how I can help."_

"_The Fire Nation people love you. You are their own 'Champion,' in a way. Should my supposed bride act…inappropriately towards you, so to speak, she would quickly fall from grace in the people's eyes."_

"_Sir?"_

"_Katara is a representative of the Water people now. All eyes are on her. Should she appear promiscuous, or try to get out of the binding contract between our countries, support for the war will swell. I am sending you to rendezvous with the travelling party. Make sure you give the Water Princess_ _a warm welcome."_

_**XXXXX**_

It became an unspoken decision that every night Zuko and Katara would meet on the deck during Zuko's night shift. Sometimes they would merely go through basic training motions side by side, and other times they would have mock fights. Both of them were hesitant at first when they began to spar, but after they began to feel each other out and learn each other's styles, fighting quickly became fun as they struggled to best each other.

Three days after the first time Zuko had seen Katara training on deck, a storm brewed up and he expected to spend the entirety of his shift alone in the wheelhouse, with Katara warm and dry in her cabin. He jumped about a foot when Katara entered the tower, dripping wet and smiling. He glared at her. "You shouldn't be up here. Or even out. It's dangerous."

She laughed, gathering her hair over a shoulder and wringing it out. "You're kidding, right? Remember who you're talking to." She ruffled her hair and shook it out. "Water bender, in the middle of the ocean, during a storm, under the full moon?" Katara stepped up to the window and pressed her palm flat against it. "I live for moments like this."

"Full moon? I thought that was three nights ago."

Katara shrugged and turned to face him, leaning against her window. "I fibbed that night. It wasn't quite full. And the moon is full for three nights. It's a shame that it's too cloudy right now to see. I was out on another boat once during a storm when the moon was full." Katara closed her eyes and smiled. "It felt…amazing." Zuko stared at her for a moment, seeing the complete bliss on her face. Katara opened her eyes and looked at him. "You know what I mean? Have you ever felt like that when your element is all around you?"

He quickly looked away and took time to check his navigation instruments to ensure he was still on path. "I guess. My uncle tells stories of a comet that swings around every hundred years or so. Apparently it magnifies fire benders' ability. I haven't spoken to anyone who has experienced it—most of them aren't alive anymore—but it's supposed to be amazing. Like…How did my uncle put it? He had an old friend who saw it. All fire benders can feel the flame inside them. He said it was like that flame became a volcano."

"When is it supposed to come around again?"

"I haven't kept track of it. Sometime in our lifetime, for sure. And if my uncle didn't see it when he was child…I'm sure it's soon, then."

Katara laughed. "If your uncle heard that he wouldn't be too happy, calling him an old man like that."

"I didn't call him an old man," Zuko argued with a smile. "Just…almost a hundred years old." She laughed harder at that, and Zuko couldn't help but chuckle along.

When she finally got over her laughter, she said, "Well, you know what? When that comet comes around, let's watch it together."

Zuko couldn't help but smile. "I would like that."

Katara shrugged. "Yeah well…maybe then you'd finally be able to beat me in a fight."

Zuko snorted, and Katara began laughing all over again.

Had they thought about it, they would have shrugged off the sudden bond to the fact they were the only people the same age on the ship. That they were new to each other and interesting. She had never talked to a fire bender, and he had never seen the other side of the war he fought. They reveled in having sparing partners that were so different—neither of them had been able to train with someone who used a different element than their own. Zuko loved the challenge that was in trying to defeat Katara when she clearly had the advantage in the middle of the ocean at night; Katara was always having to work her hardest to fight against such a fierce opponent. And neither of them could deny that the conversations they had—which usually dissolved into light arguments—never failed to keep them engaged and on their toes.

Had anyone else been witness to their private night meetings, however, they would have told a much different story. They would have clearly seen the excitement the teens had when together—Zuko had never truly been around a girl his age unsupervised, and the only boys Katara ever spoke to were her brother and the young warriors she met in war meetings. Any one of the men on the ship would have known what was bound to result from this, being experienced in it themselves. They would have known that the two didn't stand a chance.

But no one ever interrupted the two. The crew slept happily in their beds, confident that the prince had the helm and there was no need to worry, and that the precious cargo on board, the whole reason for this journey, was safely tucked away in her room.

So for night after night, the two teenagers continued to fall deeper into the web they had created, without a single glimmer of what they were doing.

XXXXX

The storm didn't blow over, and the next day the ship arrived at port to wait it out. The crew was going stir crazy. Used to being out on the open water, they couldn't stand being in the belly of the ship while it was docked up, waiting out the storm that continued to rage on the ocean. Many of them had fanned out into the port town, but Katara remained on the ship with the captain, Iroh, Zuko, and two other crewmates.

They entertained themselves by playing card games, sharing stories, and trying to impress each other with their skills. Katara tried her hand at impressing them by showing them techniques she had used to master water bending. They were completely useless in battle, but they challenged her focus and control and properly wowed the sailors. They all stared open mouthed as she braided water, and then froze it into a complex knot that they passed between each other, marveling.

Zuko smirked as he watched them stare at, catching Katara's eye. She smiled back. She had already shown him that trick, which was how she knew the rest of the crew would like it.

"Well, glad to see you're spending your time so efficiently."

Katara turned around and didn't see the crewmember jump in surprise and toss up the ice knot. Zuko easily caught it and turned his attention to Captain Jee, who had walked into the room. "Good morning, Captain."

He nodded in response. "I just received a message. Commander Zhou will be arriving at this port tomorrow to accompany us the rest of the way to the Fire Nation."

"Commander Zhou?" Katara questioned, turning to Iroh and Zuko. She turned just in time to see Zuko's face darken, but by the time she recognized it, his face had cleared to resemble impassiveness.

"Zhou is a decorated soldier in our army. The last time I had contact with him, he was spearheading an attack on the Earth Kingdom," Iroh said.

Katara tore her gaze from Zuko. "I think I've heard of him. I was told he was…" she paused, realizing the company she was with. They were all looking at her expectantly. She cleared her throat. "Um, rather formidable."

Was the captain hiding a smile? "Yes, well, his ship should arrive at noon tomorrow, if weather permits. This storm should have blown itself out by early morning, so we'll see." And with that, he left.

"Well, Zhou must be out of the Earth Kingdom," Iroh said, unnecessarily. He turned to Katara with a smile. "Look at how important you are! The Fire Lord himself must have asked Commander Zhou to act as convoy for you."

Katara forced a smile to her face. "Lucky me."

Zuko abruptly got to his feet and stalked out without a word. Katara watched him go, confused.

"Zuko does not…get along with the Commander," Iroh said uncomfortably. "I doubt he is looking forward to travelling a month and a half with him. Perhaps I should go talk to him."

Katara got to her feet. "Don't worry about it. I'll talk to him."

She found him in his room, polishing his twin swords. He glanced up at her when she entered, then turned back to his work. She silently entered and sat down beside him, picking up the blue mask that was on the floor. Using the hem of her skirt, she dusted it off, then held it to her face. "Are these just for decoration?"

Zuko looked at her, and pursed his lips, then started laughing. Katara lowered the mask and smiled back at him. "They're dual dao swords," he told her. "And yes, they're real."

"Are you any good with them?"

Zuko rose an eyebrow at her. "What do you think?"

She shrugged. "Well, I've never seen you use any kind of weapon besides firebending. I would have no idea how to use those."

"I started studying with them when I was young. My sister was a prodigy at firebending, and when I realized that I wouldn't be able to surpass her, I strove to learn as many other skills as I could. I can use these, together or separately, I know how to use daggers and axes," he nodded towards the other weapons on his wall. "I also know how to use a bow, but I'm not very good," he admitted. "I can fight barehanded too, without fire bending."

Katara turned the mask in her hands, thinking that she would be helpless if she couldn't use her bending. She got to her feet and replaced the mask on the wall, making sure it was secure on its hook. Right below it on Zuko's bureau was the ice-knot she had made. It had already begun to melt, water gathering in the shallow bowl it had been placed in. With a single touch of her finger she refroze it as cold as she could make it. "So….I would have to be blind to not notice what happened in there. What's up between you and Zhou?"

Zuko sighed and set down the sword he was polishing. "I knew that was why you came in here." He put away the polish and rag he was using, tucking it away under his bed. "I'd rather not talk about it."

Katara rolled her eyes and picked up one of the swords. She carefully trailed her finger along the edge, watching as it flashed under the light. "Look, I want to know what happened between you. I'm going to meet him tomorrow, I want to know what to expect."

He stood. "From what you said earlier, you already do." He took the sword from her and set it on the wall. Katara picked up the other one, and when he reached for it she pulled it away. He glared at her. "Look, I don't like him, okay? He's a jerk."

"How so?" she asked, and let him take the sword from her when he reached again.

She heard him breathe heavily through his nose. "He's not good to his men, for starters, which immediately makes him a bad guy in my book. Anyone in a leadership position should respect the men who work for him." He hung the sword on the wall and stood back, looking at both of them. "And because of the way the stories are told, anyone who hasn't met him thinks he's a hero." Zuko cocked his head a made a slight adjustment to the sword. "Don't get me wrong, he's a great fire bender. Fierce in battle, skilled. But his ambition and greed make me uneasy."

"Good enough reason to dislike him, I guess," Katara said. "But…is that all?"

Zuko turned and gave her a measured look, deciding if he should say more. After a moment he turned away. "I don't know why, but every time I'm around he likes to take shots at me."

"Could he be jealous of you?" Katara asked.

Zuko shook his head. "He's an experienced soldier. What would a Commander have to be jealous of me for?"

Katara shrugged. "Well, you're a prince. You said he's ambitious. Maybe he's threatened by how you outrank him, that you're closer to the throne than him."

"Maybe, but I doubt it. Personally, I think he's just ass."

"Well, ass or not, we're going to have deal with him." Katara patted his arm. "So, we can smile to his face and then complain viciously about him behind his back. I'm sure if we stick together we'll be fine." Zuko only stared at her, making her smirk. "Girls do it all the time. Trust me, it makes you feel better. Now let's go find Iroh."

"But I'm not a girl," Zuko said indignantly.

"Oh, don't worry, you'll learn fast," Katara laughed. "I bet you're a natural." She skipped out of his room before he could grab her.

**XXXXX**

That night, Zuko and Katara met in the Command Tower again, even though he hadn't been assigned watch since the ship was at dock. Since it was still raining, Zuko brought along a pai-sho board that Iroh had let him borrow. Zuko was no great player, but Katara was completely new to the game and he enjoyed teaching her…and he enjoyed winning a game he usually was destroyed at.

After she got the hang of it, Katara grew uncomfortable in the silence and started up a conversation. She joked about how they still met even though Zuko wasn't on watch, but he merely shrugged, saying he was so used to staying awake he wouldn't have been able to sleep. Katara couldn't help but admit the same.

Eventually the conversation came around to the party that was to arrive the next day. "I just don't understand the point of all this," Zuko grumbled. "There's no reason for Zhou to come along to escort you, while we're doing it already. You'd think he'd have more important things to do."

Katara frowned. "Now that you mention it, it does seem a little strange. Didn't Iroh say it must have been…" she paused, then forced, "the Fire Lord that asked for this? Why would he do that?"

"I have no idea. Zhou is soldier, who should be spending his time in the Earth Kingdom." Zuko sat back. "To be honest, I wasn't happy with being assigned this, months of what I considered babysitting."

"Thanks, Zuko, really, you flatter me," Katara deadpanned.

He ignored her. "That's what I thought. I didn't know what _wonderful company _you could be," he said, sickly sweet, making a face at her. She stuck her tongue out at him. "Seriously, though, it doesn't make sense. My father is a practical man, and I can't understand his reasoning behind pulling Zhou from the battlefield, with a fully staffed warship, to meet up with a party that's already guarded. It's not like this is a dangerous journey. The most dangerous thing that is going to happen is passing through Earth Kingdom ports…and the ones we are stopping at are hardly able to call themselves part of the Earth Kingdom anyway, they're not manned or patrolled, they govern themselves." Zuko shook his head. "Unless he's trying to have a big pomp ceremony…but he's never been interested in that before."

Katara frowned and looked out the window. "Hey, it stopped raining."

Zuko got to his feet and moved to the glass. The ocean was completely calm. Katara abandoned the game to join him. She gazed at the calm ocean, then lifted her eyes to the sky. The moon was huge and full and glowing. She stared at it for a few moments. It would start to wane the next night.

"Well, Zhou will be arriving tomorrow," Zuko stated, breaking the silence. "We should probably get some sleep before we have to deal with him."

**XXXXX**

**And there you have it. Please, let me know your thoughts on this. I'm doing my best to make the relationship grow slowly between the two, because I couldn't see them going "BAM love at first sight." And just remember, the more reviews I get, the more encouraged I am to update quickly!**


	6. Chapter 6

I've been looking over what I've previously posted, and I'm embarrassed at the number of mistakes I've made. Thank you to the reviewer who informed me I've been spelling Zhao's name wrong. I also know I should have written 'Gran Gran' instead of Grams, my mistake. But mostly I apologize for the phases of the moon. I hadn't been thinking about the plot line when I first mentioned that the moon was full—the first night Zuko saw Katara bend on the ship—and I tried to fix that later by fudging that Katara had fibbed, but I plan to go back and fix that later when I take out all the edit problems. Right now, let's say the moon is in the last night of being full.

XXXXX

Zuko stared at the wall, trying to find the motivation to get out of bed. Usually mornings weren't a probably for him, but from the moment he opened his eyes he knew what was coming.

Zhao. Starting today, Zuko was going to have to spend the rest of the journey rubbing elbows with the arrogant man. And no doubt his large warship would only slow their pace, drawing the trip out.

With a sigh, Zuko reluctantly sat up and tossed the blanket off his lap. Getting to his feet, he stretched, letting out a satisfied groan as his back popped and cracked. He stepped toward his bureau, about to don his casual clothes, and then changed his mind. Zhao was undoubtedly going to try to intimidate everyone with some show of shiny armor and large crew, so he might as well play along.

Five minutes later he left his cabin wearing his official uniform and made his way to the mess. There he found most of the crew having breakfast. Katara was absent. Zuko took a seat beside his uncle, mumbling a good morning.

His uncle nodded and passed him a plate. "I see you're preparing for battle," he said with a slight smile, nodding towards his decision in clothing. Zuko just grumbled into his food, making him chuckle. "The entire crew is a little jumpy. All wearing their best clothes too. I even visited our guest this morning and gave her a little something…her own 'armor,' if you will." When Zuko gave his uncle a confused look, he continued. "I bought a dress for her yesterday."

Zuko stared at his uncle. "You gave her a dress? Why?"

Iroh smiled. "You need to learn about women. Nice clothes will make her more confident."

Zuko scowled. "I'm no feminist, but that sounds rather stereotypical. Katara isn't some bubble-headed girl you can win over with trifles."

"Easy there, Zuko. I wasn't saying that, no need to rise up to her defense," Iroh chuckled, making his nephew scowl even more. "But Zhao is going to be showing off. I'm sure she doesn't want to meet him wearing her plain old clothes she's been travelling in. And we both know Zhao, unfortunately. He will look down on her if she looks like his idea of a Water Tribe commoner. Frankly, I don't want to give him the excuse."

Zuko nodded, but he couldn't help thinking that the way Zhao could treat Katara would be nothing to how she would be treated after she got to the palace.

That thought was cut short when Iroh nudged him in the side. He looked up from his food and saw all the heads in the mess turn towards one direction. Frowning, he turned as well.

Katara was standing in the doorway, looking uncomfortable with the sudden attention. She was wearing a red and gold dress, with a golden sash tied around her waist. She had released her hair from its usual braid, instead tying half of it up and letting the rest wave down her back. As the men continued to stare, she crossed her arms and glanced down, a blush rising to her face.

"Lady Katara, you look lovely!" Iroh called across from the room. "Come, sit down over here. I'm sure the crewmembers will remember their manners any time now and close their mouths." Reprimanded, the men quickly looked back at their plates. Katara scurried across the room and sat down between Zuko and Iroh when they parted to make room.

"Thank you for the dress," she murmured quickly, still embarrassed.

"It looks lovely on you," Iroh complimented. "I worried about the fit, but it seems I needn't have."

_No, the fit was perfect_, Zuko thought, watching her.

Katara smiled, glancing down on the dress. She fingered the material, running her hands over the wide three quarter sleeves. "It's quite…flowy. I'm used to warm animal skins, not silk. It'll take a while to get used to." She pulled a bowl of porridge towards her. "I would have preferred to meet Zhao wearing my people's colors of blue and white, though."

Iroh ducked his head. "Those colors weren't the most popular in the stores I looked at yesterday, unfortunately."

Katara smiled wryly. "No, I suppose not. But I am very thankful of you for thinking of me." She touched the stone that hung around her neck, running her thumb over the design. _What would my mother think,_ she wondered, _of me wearing these colors?_ "I should probably get used to it."

Zuko couldn't take his eyes off her. There was just something about her wearing his nation's colors that was just…Zuko swallowed hard and looked away, suddenly extremely uncomfortable. Katara and Iroh continued talking, but he wasn't paying attention. He didn't blame the other crewmembers for staring.

"I'm going to find the captain," he said abruptly, getting to his feet. Katara and Iroh glanced up from their conversation to acknowledge him and he left the mess.

He rubbed the back of his neck as he strode through the corridors, embarrassed with himself. He had talked to her every single day of this trip, so there was no reason he should be noticing just now that she was…female. Given, outfit he met her in wasn't the most flattering, especially when she had her cloak on, but seeing her like that had just about knocked him over.

Damn his uncle. Trust Iroh to choose something that was so…form fitting. How had the man guessed her measurements, anyway? His uncle would never be described as a lecher, but he had a certain way with woman that Zuko could never understand…not that he would want to. Pushing those thoughts aside, he went to find the captain to see if there was any more news from Zhao.

XXXXX

An hour later, the majority of the crew had gathered on the dock. Katara stood by Iroh's left, with Zuko on his right. They watched in silence as a large rowboat drew slowly closer, dispatched from the warship that had just arrived. It was too large to have boarded the small dock that was made for fishing boats and smaller merchant ships, which could barely accommodate Zuko's ship.

Zuko glared at the figure that was standing aboard the rowboat. They were still a ways from the dock, but he could already recognize the arrogant form of Zhao. His lip curled as he drew nearer. Was he really going to have to travel with this man? He would rather sleep on a bed of broken glass than have to deal with him for a month.

But, unfortunately, Zuko had no say in this situation, so he was forced to stand on the dock and await the arrival of Commander Zhao.

After several minutes of awkward silence, Zhao's rowboat finally drew up to the dock. The crew members stepped forward to catch ropes thrown from it and expertly secured them.

"General Iroh!" Zhao called, stepping onto the dock. "We meet again. I hope you have fared well since I have seen you last." Though his words were polite, they seemed insincere.

"Yes, I have," Iroh said. He reached out his hand, and after a moment, Zhao grasped it and gave it a brief shake. He quickly released it and turned to Zuko.

"You're Highness," he said disdainfully, with a curt nod.

"Commander," Zuko said, with even less warmth.

Zhao looked away from him and turned to Katara. She raised her chin and met his eyes steadily, not sure what to expect.

His reaction confused her, however. His entire demeanor changed when he set his eyes on her. A smile crossed his mouth. "And you must the Southern Water Tribe Princess, Lady Katara." He bowed, holding out a hand. Katara went to shake it, but when her hand touched his he gripped her fingers and raised them to his mouth, placing a kiss on her knuckles. He straightened, oblivious to the bewildered stares he was receiving, from his own crew and all the others on the dock. "I'm Commander Zhao. It's my great pleasure to meet you."

Katara forced a smile and politely withdrew her hand. It would be rude to wipe it on her dress, but her skin was crawling. "I've heard much about you," she said quietly, keeping that uncomfortable smile on her face.

"Have you?" he asked, sounding pleased. "Well, you'll just have to share those stories over the meal I have planned aboard my ship. I'd love to hear them."

"Commander?" Iroh asked.

Zhao pulled his attention away from Katara. "Yes. You and your nephew are invited, of course, as well as your captain. I need to acquaint the Lady with her new quarters."

"Her new quarters? I see no need for her to move from where she resides now," Zuko said sharply.

Zhao smirked at him. " It only makes sense that she be kept the most comfortable as we can provide. While I'm sure your ship is…adequate, it goes without saying that the Lady would prefer to be in the quarters we have already provided for her. Much larger accommodations, tailored to make sure her journey is as enjoyable as can be."

Zuko clenched his fists, but before he could say a word Iroh stepped in. "Well, we shall certainly see," he said graciously. "I, for one, am certainly looking forward to that meal you have promised. Now that we are all acquainted, why don't we see what you have prepared for us?"

Zhao ducked his head and once again got aboard the rowboat. He turned and held out a steadying hand for Katara, which she had no choice but to take. He helped her aboard, ensuring that she sat right beside him. Iroh and Zuko got in as well. A few of Zhao's crewmembers remained on the dock with the remainder of Zuko's crew, already socializing with each other.

Zuko stared blatantly at Zhao's back with narrowed eyes. He did not like the way he was acting. Never in all the time he had known him was Zhao so polite or courteous. Nor did he like the way Zhao was giving Katara so much attention. He glanced sideways at his uncle, but his face was blank of any emotion, staring serenely over the waves. Disgruntled, Zuko crossed his arms and sat silently as they drew closer to the giant looming monster that Zhao called a ship. Just to piss him off he played with the idea of asking Zhao if he was overcompensating for something, but he wasn't going to lower himself to his level. Let the Commander act like a child with all his snide remarks, Zuko was going to behave the way that was expected of him.

Too soon, they had pulled up alongside the cold steel hull. Katara titled her head all the way up to eye the top of the railing. The two crewmembers that had been rowing grabbed ropes at the bow and stern and hastily scrambled up the ladder that was resting alongside. They disappeared from view for a few moments after reaching the deck, and then ropes went taunt and the boat gave a sudden lurch. Katara fell backwards and Zuko grabbed her shoulders to steady her. She clutched at his hand and the side of the boat as it lifted into the air.

In less than a minute they drew up alongside the railing. Zhao was the first one out, turning to aid Katara aboard. Once she had both feet on the warship, Zhao turned away, leaving Zuko and Iroh to board by themselves.

She stiffened when Zhao kept his hand on the small of her back while he swept his other arm out before them. "Lady Katara, my crew."

At least two dozen men stood on the deck, standing in neat rows. When Zhao spoke, they all snapped to attention and bowed. "Welcome aboard, Lady Katara!" they shouted in unison, making her jump. "We are proud to serve you while you journey with us!"

Zuko fought a grimace. It was just like Zhao to waste time getting his soldiers and crew to perform like this. Zuko would never order his crew to act like trained pets, they had much more important things to do.

Katara nodded politely to the crew as they straightened, unsure of how to act. She was electrically aware of Zhao's hand on her back, and was wondering if it would be impolite to step out of his grip. "After a tour of the ship we can eat the meal that is being prepared as we speak," Zhao told her.

"A tour would be wonderful!" Iroh said loudly, stepping up and clapping Zhao on the shoulder and giving him a slight shake. Zhao dropped his hand from Katara as Iroh gently pulled him a few steps forward. "Wonderful crew you have here," he said with a smile.

Katara quickly moved over to Zuko, putting him between herself and the Commander. She glanced at him, trying to silently ask what was going on. He caught her look and gave a small shrug, looking as confused as she did.

"Thank you," Zhao said curtly, looking pointedly at Iroh's hand. The older man pretended not to notice and continued to smile at him.

"How do you like it," Katara muttered under her breath. Zuko heard her and started to laugh, then had to turn it into a cough, snorting into his fist.

"Why don't we start that tour?" Iroh asked genially, motioning Zhao to walk before him. "I would love to see your operations!"

The Commander slid his gaze over his shoulder at Katara, then back at Iroh. "Yes, of course," he said, sounding unenthusiastic.

For half an hour, Zhao led them through the bowels of the ship. Katara had known it would be larger than Zuko's, which was built more for speed, but she was still surprised. If Zhao meant to be intimidating, he managed it. She felt sick as Zhao showed her the armory, filled with weapons used against her people. She forced her face to look politely interested as he acted curator over the spears and sword used to draw blood of her friends and family. He bragged as he led them through the stables used to house the vicious komodo rhinos that had doubtlessly trampled villages.

She couldn't tell what bothered her more—his absolute ignorance to her situation, or his arrogance. Katara knew that she was proud, but Zhao was just…The absolute superiority that radiated from him rankled her. Whenever he passed crewmembers, who all bowed at his presence, he did not acknowledge them. He boasted about his equipment in an offhand way, as if he knew what he had was notable but didn't value it. Katara got the vibe that he was simultaneously trying to aggravate Zuko while impressing her.

She didn't understand it. Why was he bothering to be so polite to her? From what she could tell, he was indifferent to Iroh—his superior—and outright rude to Zuko. She was just a Water Tribe girl.

Well, that wasn't quite true, was it? She had self-proclaimed herself as the Princess of the Southern Water Tribe, and was going to be the…bride of the Fire Lord. She wasn't a nobody anymore. Perhaps Zhao thought that if he won her over he would win favor with the Fire Lord?

She tuned back in as Iroh proclaimed he would love to have that meal Zhao had been talking about earlier, rubbing his belly. Hoping to end this unpleasant tour, Katara hastily agreed.

They were lead to a large mess hall, where long table had already been set. Zhao walked over to a chair and motioned for Katara to sit down. She reluctantly walked over, not liking having her back turned to him. Once she was seated, Zhao pushed in her chair and took his seat at the head of the table by her side. Certain that Zuko would not be pleased if he had to sit near the Commander, Iroh took place by his other side, allowing the prince to sit by Katara's right.

Iroh eyed the food before them. "My, Zhao, you certainly have spoiled us with all this! Such delicacies!"

Zhao's lip curled into a smile. "Well, I could only provide the best for my very special guests," he said, looking at Katara. She gave him a quick smile and looked down at her plate. She just wanted to get done with this meal and get as far away from him as possible. Would she have to deal with things like this all the time now? People drowning her in attention? Hounding her, kissing up to her? She wanted none of it.

Both Zuko and Katara were relieved when the meal finally ended, having to sit through even more of Zhao's hardly veiled barbs and bragging. Hoping to escape, Katara said, "That was a wonderful. All this excitement has really worn me down, and would like to return to my cabin. I'm sure we'll have more time to talk tomorrow." She put a hand on Zuko's arm and turned, all but dragging him with her.

"Excuse me, Lady Katara, but your cabin is in the other direction," Zhao said.

"But I thought the deck is just on the other side of the door?"

Zhao laughed. "Yes, it is, but your cabin is on the other side of the ship, like all the other residential quarters. I didn't get a chance to show it to you yet."

Katara stiffened, and tightened her hand on Zuko's arm. He wanted her to stay on the ship? No! She didn't want to. That would mean being separated from Iroh and Zuko, who she had grudgingly come to like. That would mean no more midnight training sessions. And she liked Zuko's crew, they all treated her with respect, but also as if she was just another person they could joke with. The crew on this ship seemed much too formal. And Zhao…the idea of having to stay with him gave her creepy-crawly chills up and down her spine.

Zuko sensed her discomfort, and turned to face Zhao. "I believe she would be happier on my ship. She's already familiar with it, no need to make her move."

Zhao's gave him a thin smile. "Well, she has yet to see the accommodations that have been prepared for her. And the whole reason behind my escorting her would be foolish if I could not keep an eye on her, would it not?"

"I believe Katara should have the final say," Iroh said, getting up from his seat. "After all, she's the one with the decision."

Zhao looked at her. "Yes, she is. She can decide after I have shown her to her quarters."

Katara wanted to argue, because she was absolutely positive that there was no way she would ever want to remain on this ship, but how could she say no? 'That's quite alright, but I refuse to be around you? You creep me out and I want to leave?'

She reluctantly nodded to Zhao and released Zuko. "This way," the Commander said, leading her towards a door. Iroh and Zuko moved to follow, but just as Katara stepped through it Zhao turned to them and said, "I'll send in the captain so you can all discuss the journey plans. He'll be down in a moment."

Zuko stared as Zhao closed the door in their faces. He turned to his uncle, who looked surprised. "Can you believe that?" Zuko demanded. "That disrespectful jerk just dismissed us!"

"Easy, Zuko, no need to get all riled up."

"I don't like any of this," Zuko continued, crossing his arms. "Zhao's acting strange. I've never seen him pay any attention to someone who wasn't Fire Nation Military. So why is he being so nice to her?"

Iroh shrugged and returned to the table, adding some more food to his plate. "Who knows? Perhaps he is just being a proper gentleman."

"All of a sudden, just like that? And he wants Katara to stay on his ship? Why?"

"The warship is safer," Iroh offered.

"From what?" Zuko paced back and forth. "We're sailing in waters controlled by our Navy. There's no danger! And his warship is slow," he complained, "much slower than mine. Why would he be assigned to escort her? It's as if he wants to slow everything down!"

"Not him, Zuko," Iroh said, turning his attention from his plate for a moment. "Remember that he was ordered to this."

Zuko fell silent, processing that. After a moment he shook his head. "That doesn't change that Katara clearly didn't want to go with him. I don't like the idea of leaving her alone with him. I'm going to find them."

"Zuko, don't go causing trouble!" Iroh protested, but his nephew was already out the door.

XXXXX

"Here we are," Zhao said, swinging open a door and motioning for Katara to step inside. She ducked into the room and looked around.

She couldn't deny that it was larger than her cabin on Zuko's ship, which if she had laid on the floor lengthwise she would probably be able to touch the walls with her toes and fingertips. This was at least twice as large. The bed was bigger too, and there was a dresser and table on the other side. The decorative framing of the furniture seemed very out of place to Katara, it looked like they belonged more in a wealthy family's bedroom than a cabin inside a warship. She fingered the sheets on the bed and found that they were silk.

This room certainly was built for comfort. So why, then, did she feel so uncomfortable?

Maybe it was because Zhao was standing in the doorway, watching her closely as she surveyed the room. "How do you like it?" he asked.

"It's lovely," Katara said, honestly. Just not for her. "But I think—"

"You're going to enjoy it here," Zhao said, speaking right over her. He walked into the room and dropped a hand on her shoulder. "Anything you want I can provide for you."

Katara had the ridiculous urge to bite his hand, and the image of that craziness helped her tap down her anger. But he was pushing it with the touchy feely. She had just met him today and he was completely comfortable with putting himself in her personal space. It was time to end this before she lost her temper. "Yes, well, lucky me, I don't really want for much. Now—"

"That can't be true," Zhao said with a laugh. "You can tell me. My job description is keeping you happy."

Katara forced a quick smile and stepped away, with the pretense of examining the mirror that was above the table. While she pretended to be interested in her hair, she watched as Zhao's face darkened for a moment, then he seemed to think of something. He took a breath and stepped behind her so he was right over her shoulder in their reflections. "To be honest, Lady Katara, I wasn't all that excited when I found out I was ordered to escort you. In fact, I was quiet annoyed. I thought I would be babysitting."

Katara blinked. He seemed to have dropped this act he was playing with all day, and had decided to show her his true colors. She remained silent and merely watched him in the mirror as he continued speaking.

"But when I met you today, I was surprised. You're nothing like what I expected. While you're young, you're very smart. I thought that I would be saddled with an entitled brat…but I met an insightful woman instead."

Katara was confused by his sudden change in attitude and his compliments. She rose an eyebrow at him. "You noticed that all today? I hardly spoke a word."

Zhao chuckled. "Yes, well, that wasn't your fault." He met her gaze in the mirror. "I have a bad habit of talking too much when I'm in the presence of a beautiful woman."

He let that hang in the air, looking right at her. Katara didn't know what to say and dropped her gaze.

"It's true what I said earlier, Katara. If you want something, let me know. You pointed out that we don't really know each other, but I already know that I like you." He paused, seeming to consider something. Hesitantly he said, "I'm a powerful man, Katara. And I don't like what you've been forced into. Having to give up everything, practically become a living sacrifice."

Again silence fell, and Katara kept her mouth firmly shut. She didn't like where this was going.

"Should you ask it…I could take you away from all this."

"What?" Katara burst out. She spun around to face him. "What are you talking about?"

Encouraged by her reaction, Zhao said, "I'm one of the few men in the world strong enough to oppose the Fire Lord. There's no way you want this arranged marriage with him."

Katara stared at him. He was speaking openly of treason! "You would start a war with him? Over me?" she scoffed.

Zhao shrugged. "Perhaps I wouldn't have to fight. There could be an accident on our journey, you could disappear. I would keep you safe, provide for you."

"Why?" Katara asked, completely baffled by the sudden turn in conversation.

Zhao stepped closer so they were nearly touching. "I told you, Lady Katara. I like you. I don't want to see you get crushed under Ozai's presence. I want to get to know you better, see you blossom."

As understanding came to her, Katara's brow creased. "You want me to break the marriage with Ozai so I can marry you?"

Zhao shook his head. "No, of course not. Nothing as constraining as marriage." He reached out and put a hand on her arm. "I can take care of you, if you let me."

A cold anger erupted in her as she looked at him. He assumed she would be his—his concubine? Mistress? Whatever he wanted to call it, Katara was pretty sure she knew what he was getting at. Trade her future with the Fire Lord so she could be Zhao's kept pet.

The only thing that kept her from slapping him was a voice in her head ordering she be cautious. Zhao was clearly unhinged, if he was suggesting this. And she had no water on her. She couldn't sense any nearby through all the metal of the ship. Being trapped inside this cabin with a master firebender was not an ideal situation. Things could get ugly very fast if she upset him.

"I could never abandon my position, Commander," she said quietly, keeping her head down so he couldn't see her expression. Her mind was racing. How did she extract herself from this situation and get back to Iroh and Zuko? She tried to step towards the door, but Zhao took hold of her other arm.

"Katara, there's no need to be afraid. I'll keep you safe."

Katara shuddered when he ran his hands up and down her arms. She tried to disguise it as shaking her head. "That's not what I'm worried about. My people would surely be punished if I were to disappear."

"Why should you have to suffer for them? If you come with me, I can give you a happy life. Give me what I desire and you would never want for another thing again."

Before Katara could stop herself, she shoved him off her. "You think I would trade myself for that?" she demanded. "You're disgusting!"

She knew she had made a huge mistake as Zhao regained his balance and turned to glare at her. She went to dart to the door, but Zhao grabbed her and shoved her against the table, a hand on her throat. She let out a strangled cry as he pressed her against the wall, trying to kick her legs as they hung in the air over the table edge.

"How dare you," Zhao growled, right up close to her face. "Do you have any idea what I am offering you?"

She spat on him. Zhao backhanded her across the face, making her yelp, and then shoved her back against the wall. She shoulder hit the mirror and it fell, first hitting the table and then crashing to the floor, shattering. "You filthy witch! I'll kill you for that disrespect!"

Katara got her knees up to her chest and kicked Zhao away. She jumped down to the floor and crouched, reaching under the table. _The mirror, _Katara thought desperately. If she got a hold of a piece…

Zhao got a fistful of her hair and tossed her to the ground, getting on top of her. With a snarl, Katara slashed across his face, razor sharp shard cutting her fingers even as it sliced into his cheek. Zhao yelled and reared back, a hand to his face. Katara rolled over and started scrambling for the door.

Zhao tackled her, knocking the wind out of her as he pinned her down. "Get off me!" Katara shrieked, fighting him as best he could, but he was too heavy and too strong.

XXXXX

Zuko couldn't shake that something was wrong as he rushed through the corridors. He had gotten turned around and lost in this damn monster of a ship before he managed to find the residential quarters, and he had this awful feeling in his gut. He needed to find Katara, now.

Iroh panted after him, not amused. "Zuko, we don't need to go stepping on the Commander's toes. This is his ship and we need to listen to him. We should return to the mess and wait for the captain like Zhao asked."

"Uncle—" Zuko snapped, exasperated, "I just don't—"

He stopped as he heard a crash coming from down the corridor. Both of them turned towards the noise. "What was that?" Iroh murmured, frowning.

The crash was followed by a scream. Iroh and Zuko both ran, but Zuko easily outpaced his uncle, immediately recognizing the voice.

XXXXX

The door smashed open and Katara had the briefest vision of red as Zuko jumped over her, slamming his knee directly into Zhao's chin. Zhao stumbled back as Zuko knelt down beside Katara. He helped her up and as she coughed harshly, rubbing her throat.

"It isn't what you think!" Zhao said quickly, backing away. "She—she tried to seduce me! Offered me her body if I would take her away—"

"You're lying!" Zuko snarled, standing over Katara.

Iroh helped her stand while he looked around the room, taking in the smashed mirror and the wound on Zhao's face. She clung to his arms as she gasped in air, throat sore and bruised. She turned to Zhao.

"You lying bastard!" she yelled. "You tried to kill me!"

"I didn't!" Zhao insisted, drawing himself up and trying to regain some form of decorum. "She's just trying to trick you, like she did me! Don't trust her, she's only a whore trying to save her own skin!"

Flame splashed against the wall right where Zhao's head was before he ducked. Zuko stood glaring at the Commander, prepared to strike again. "Call her that again," he seethed. "I dare you."

"He offered to get me out of the arranged marriage if I agreed to sleep with him," Katara said, glaring at Zhao and shaking with fury, never having been more angry in her life. The man was lucky she had no water. She wouldn't have shown him any mercy for what he had tried to do…and he wouldn't be recognizable once she was done with him.

Iroh looked from Katara to Zhao. "What do you have to say for yourself, Commander?" he asked quietly.

"I would never turn against the Fire Lord!" Zhao protested. "I'm telling you the truth, she was trying to seduce me!"

"The blood on your face and the bruises on her neck say otherwise," Zuko said through gritted teeth. He would like nothing more than to disintegrate the man right then and there, but knew his uncle would stop him.

Zhao scowled, having nothing to say to that.

"I want him arrested," Katara said. "I want him to be put on public trial so everyone knows what a traitor and a scumbag he is."

"You can't arrest me," Zhao snorted.

"I would like to kill you," Katara said. She stepped out of Iroh's arms and looked right at him, eyes icy. "But I feel that taking the life of a Fire Nation Commander would not please my future husband. Instead, I'm going to toss you at his feet, chained and bound and marked as a traitor, as a wedding present."

"I would like to see you try," Zhao said, sneering at her. "You would never be able to lay a finger on me."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea," Iroh said, ignoring the Commander.

Zuko shook his head. "He insulted Katara's honor and tried to humiliate her. Being put in front of my father in a month isn't enough. He needs to pay now."

"That isn't your decision to make," Iroh said. "The Fire Lord will be the one to decide his punishment."

"Fine then," Zuko said, lowering his hands. "Then I challenge Commander Zhao to an Agni Kai. And when I beat him in front of his crew, then I will be satisfied."

Zhao rose an eyebrow, smirking. "Think you can fight me, boy? Then I accept your challenge. We'll see what happens when you try to take me without your uncle behind you."

XXXXX

Ugh, I really didn't like writing this chapter. I've had this entire idea in my head for a while now, so I thought it wouldn't be difficult, but when I tried to write it I began to see giant holes in my logic and everything felt awkward. I've been set on this for so long though, and I had already set it up in the previous chapter, so I had to stick with it.

I really don't like Zhao, mainly because I couldn't get a feel for his voice. In this chapter, he's being entirely fake until the end, so I struggled with his personality and character. He's trying to impress Katara, but I reasoned in my head that Zhao isn't the greatest with women. I figured he's been more interested in his job as a soldier than dealing with them, which is why he tried to make her like him all at once instead of slowly trying to win her over.

I don't approve of Katara being such a damsel in distress, because she is so strong and fierce, but I figured that I really needed to give Zuko a huge jolt to make him realize that he wants Katara.

As always, please let me know what you think. I feel like such a mean author when I don't update often, and I thank everyone who has stuck with this since its beginning.


	7. Chapter 7

**I managed to worm a little back-story into this chapter, so you guys don't have to keep guessing about Zuko's past. And this one is a little on the short side, but progress is progress, right? I didn't make you wait two months for this last update, so I'm trying to get better. **

**XXXXX**

"I don't understand, what is Agni Kai?"

"It's a duel between firebenders," Iroh said, glancing at her, then looking pointedly at Zuko. "And I feel like this is unnecessary. I understand your anger, nephew, but there is no need to challenge him. You might be injured, and that will help no one."

Zuko ignored him. A crowd had started to gather on deck as word got around as to what had happened. The previous discipline they had displayed earlier was now gone as they stared at Katara, taking in her mussed appearance. She made a point of standing tall, doing her best to not let them bother her. Out on deck, where she could sense water all around, she was untouchable.

"If anyone should fight him it should be me," Katara told Zuko. "I don't want you fighting for me. What's the point? Iroh's already instructed the captain of the ship that Zhao's under arrest and is to be brought back to the Fire Nation for sentencing."

Zuko ignored her, too. He was still burning with the same anger he had felt when he had first opened that door and found Zhao on top of Katara. He was angry at himself, too, for letting it happen. He hadn't wanted to let Katara go off alone with Zhao, but he had never thought Zhao would attack her. He wasn't about to underestimate Zhao again.

The former Commander was already standing at the other end of the deck, stretching. The entire crew gave him a wide berth, unsure of protocol in such a situation. Iroh—a member of the royal family, brother to the Fire Lord himself—had denounced Zhao, so he was no longer their leader, but some had spent years under his command. Zuko eyed them, wondering if any would try to interfere. At the moment, they all looked content to stand back and watch what was about happen.

Zuko began to pull off his uniform, stripping down to the waist. He struggled to find the calm he needed to keep a clear head. Behind him, he heard Iroh explaining the rules to Katara.

"How does one win?"

"Submission of his opponent…or death."

"Death?" Katara exclaimed in alarm. She grabbed Zuko's arm and yanked him around to face her, breaking his concentration. "Zuko, are you crazy? He's already under arrest, there's no need to do this!"

"I already challenged him and he accepted," he said stubbornly. "I'm finishing this."

"For who?" she demanded. "Me? Or yourself? Because I don't want this. I want to see him thrown in jail, and I certainly don't want to see you get killed for something as stupid as this!"

Zuko glared at her. "You think I'll lose to him?"

"I think that if he gets the chance he won't hesitate to kill you," Katara snapped, poking his bare chest with a finger. "The man's crazy. He's got nothing left, and I bet everything I own that he'll try to take you with him."

"That won't happen."

Katara recognized the look in his eyes. It was the same look her brother got when he was determined on something. Realizing she wasn't going to change his mind, she snorted in disgust and threw up her hands. "Make sure that it doesn't," she told him, moving back to Iroh's side.

Everyone on deck was backing up against the railing in order to give the duelists as much room as possible. Iroh had taken up Zuko's discarded uniform, folding it neatly even as he frowned at Zuko. "Stay next to me," Iroh told Katara. "The flames are going to be flying everywhere."

The sky was quickly darkening, as the sun had already disappeared behind the waves some time ago. Katara could just make out the faint outline of the moon in its final night of fullness as the two firebenders walked out to the middle of the deck. They both glared at one another as they stalked towards the captain of the ship, who had been deemed judge of the duel.

Katara bit her lip as she looked at Zhao. He had also taken off his uniform, and the newly revealed muscles were daunting. He certainly looked in shape. She flicked her eyes over Zuko and tried to reassure herself. He wasn't any lightweight either. And she had sparred with him, she knew how good he was.

XXXXX

Zuko stared down at the metal by his fist as he kneeled down, waiting for the captain to announce the beginning of the fight. He closed his eyes briefly and calmed his breathing. He could do this. He had been sparring with Katara every night, which had not only kept his skills sharp, it had given him an advantage he hadn't expected. His body was used to fighting at night. Zhao, like any other firebender, was trained for the daytime. So while the Commander's body was already cycling down, Zuko's system was just getting ready for its regular exercise.

The captain barked out an order, and Zuko swiftly took to his feet and spun to face Zhao. The older man stood with his arms up, and had the gall to smirk at him. He clearly had no doubts he would be able to beat the younger bender.

Zuko made the first move, shooting a flame at his opponent, merely getting a feel of him. The Commander laughed as he dispersed it, then retaliated, leaping forward and punching a burst of fire in his direction. Zuko ducked and rolled, spinning to keep Zhao in his sights, but Zhao had already sent a flurry of fireballs in his direction.

Swinging his arms, Zuko sent out a wave of fire to meet Zhao's oncoming attack. He didn't expect Zhao to leap out of the flames and just barely got out of the way in time before the man flew past him. Zhao managed to swipe at Zuko's head, clawing with a flaming hand. Zuko winced as he felt heat splash over his scalp and kicked Zhao away, knocking the man to the side. He hastily ran a hand over his head to make sure it wasn't on fire and could smell the awful odor of burning hair.

Zhao stood laughing at him. "A few inches closer and I'd have made the rest of your face just as ugly as that scar you got there."

Zuko let out a enraged snarl and snapped out his leg, then was kicking with the other one before the first touched the ground. A spinning back kick followed those. Zhao managed to diffuse the first two flame attacks, but the third blew up in his face, making him stumble. Zuko charged forward and leapt, snapping out both his feet into twin kicks and jetting flame toward his opponent. He landed just as Zhao was struck to the ground.

Running over, Zuko pounced onto Zhao, driving both knees into his chest to make sure he was immobilized. The Commander grunted out and flinched when Zuko slammed a flaming fist down beside his head. He grabbed his throat and leaned forward, staring into Zhao's hate filled face. "You're lucky Katara doesn't want me to kill you," he growled fiercely. "She wants to see you tossed in front of the Fire Lord. I doubt my father will be as merciful as I am after he hears of your treasonous plans."

Releasing him, Zuko spared him one last disgusted look and got to his feet. He noted that the moon had just risen, looking giant in its low position to the horizon. A brief glance at the nodding judge assured Zuko that his win was accepted. He turned to look at the spectators in the dimming light, namely at Iroh and Katara.

His uncle inclined his head slightly, and Katara couldn't hold back her smile even though she still looked annoyed. Iroh spoke to some of the soldiers standing beside him and they nodded, walking forward to arrest Zhao. They strode past Zuko, giving him brief bows, which he returned with a nod.

He reset his focus on Katara, who was walking up to him. "And you were worried," he smirked.

Katara scowled at him. "Don't you mock me. He nearly took off your head." She moved in close to him and lifted a hand that was wreathed in water. "Now hold still, I need to take care of this."

He flinched away when her hand first made contact with his scalp, the pain just registering now that adrenaline was leaving his system. She glared and got a firm hold of his face, and seconds later Zuko felt a soothing, cool sensation tingle over his skin. He found himself leaning into her hand, eyes closed.

"Are you going to start purring?" Katara laughed, making Zuko open his eyes and straighten. His scalp healed, she moved her hand to his hair. "Now, this, I won't be able to fix so easily…"

Zuko watched as her face changed to a smile to one of alarm, just as a yell erupted from behind him. He spun just in time to see Zhao shake off the two soldiers who were trying to tie his hands. The crazed man roared and charged forward, reaching a hand back.

As Zuko put an arm out in front of her, raising his other hand to defend against an attack, Katara didn't stop to think. She didn't consider that the moon wasn't at its strongest, and that she had sworn to never use this technique unless there were no other options. She merely acted.

In a split second she had sensed his body system. With a twitch of her wrists she got a hold of it—but, as she had forgotten to consider, the moon had barely just risen—so she couldn't control it completely. Instead of stopping him dead in his tracks, as she had intended, he merely staggered for a moment, then regained his balance. But that disruption was long enough for the two soldiers to tackle Zhao to the ground.

Normal time came rushing back to her as Zuko pushed her behind him and people on deck were yelling out, rushing forward. As soon as he was confident Zhao was subdued, Zuko turned to Katara.

"I can protect myself," she said weakly as she pushed his arm off her. Ooh, she was dizzy. Zuko's hands were back on her arms even as she tried to step away, steadying her as she tottered.

"Are you alright?" he asked, looking into her face. "You're bleeding."

"What?" she touched a hand under her nose and her fingers came away red. "Oh."

Iroh was suddenly behind her. "Is everything alright?"

Katara turned to face him, and saw his eyes widen. "I just want to go back to the ship," she said.

"Of course. Come on."

XXXXX

By the time they reached the docks Katara had recovered, and was extremely embarrassed that both and Iroh and Zuko had seen her all but faint in front of them. She repeatedly told them that she was fine, washing off the blood from her nose by leaning over the side of the rowboat. Zuko kept a hand on her arm anyway, worried she would topple over into the water.

She wanted to put this whole thing behind her. Really, today had just been awful. She was a strong waterbender, damn it, not the fragile girl they were treating her like! It wasn't as if she could blame them, however, because really…what had she done to prove otherwise? Not only had they rescued her from Zhao—a man she should be able to hold her own against!—but they doubtlessly thought she was so excited by the duel that she was nearly passed out.

It wasn't as if she could tell them the reason for her faintness was because she had attempted blood-bending when she really shouldn't have. She was lucky it had worked at all, with the moon not even an hour in the night sky. And firebenders weren't supposed to know about blood-bending in the first place.

It was stupid of her to have done it in front of everyone. And she had overreacted in response. There was no need for her to resort to blood-bending. Zuko was right in front of her, a skilled firebender that could doubtlessly have stopped whatever Zhao had thrown at them, not to mention the entire crowd watching was made mostly of other firebenders.

But Zhao had looked…completely mad. And he was aiming for both of them, her and Zuko. Fear had slammed through her when she saw him lock eyes on them, and Zuko had his back turned.

When they returned to the ship, preferring to let Iroh and Zuko explain what had happened, Katara went straight to her cabin. After a few minutes she found what she was looking for.

XXXXX

Zuko sighed as he closed the door behind him and tossed his shirt onto his bed. He was glad to have been able to escape the crew—they had insisted on throwing a party congratulating Zuko on beating Zhao in the Agni Kai. He had refused, saying he was exhausted. And it was true. It wasn't every day he was almost killed by a great firebender. The last time that had happened…

Zuko shook his head and pushed that memory away, grabbing a towel from his dresser. As he wiped himself down, he glanced at the mirror. His scar stared back at him.

A frown tugged at his mouth. No, he would never be able to forget. Everything about that day would forever be in his mind.

Finding his mother on the ground, his father standing over her. Furiously demanding to know what happened. The searing heat from his father's backhand. Screams echoed in his mind…his own, and then the servants when the news of the Fire Lady's sudden death spread across the palace. He remembered the elderly maid seeing his face and dragging him to the doctor, even as he struggled, trying to get back to his mother.

He even remembered his sister, who for once didn't bully him. It was the first time—the only time, even to this day—that Zuko had seen her cry. She was brought into the room he was being cared for in, and the tears were falling fast and thick down her face. But the second she laid eyes on him, she stopped. She stared at the red, aggravated flesh, wet eyes wide and shocked.

She didn't say a word to him. Just stared, and when Zuko awkwardly tried to hug her, comfort her, anything, she shoved him away. And she ran. Azula ran away from him, out of the room and out of sight.

The maid that had held his hand while the doctor set the bandages on him clucked her tongue and reassured Zuko that she was upset, not understanding what was going on. That she was just as confused as he was, and that he needed to remember that she was even younger than him and that it was going to take time.

But Zuko knew differently. He knew that Azula immediately, just by looking, had known that their father had done this. He also suspected that Azula had an idea of what happened, to her mother. She had seen what had happened to Zuko when she had upset Ozai.

Since that awful day, Zuko felt like he had lost everything. His mother, gone. His father, who he had always looked up to and thought was the greatest man in the world—had taken away his mother, and attacked him. And his sister, who he had never been close to, put even more distance between them, determined to show their father that she was nothing like Zuko. No, she was the perfect child, who would do anything he asked, rise to any goal he set, and make him proud.

Zuko had been young, but he understood enough of what was going on to see that no one blamed his father. Of course not. The fact that his mother, and his grandfather (Zuko later found out that he had died the same day) had both died was publicly treated as an awful, tragic coincidence. The words 'poor health' and 'illness' had been murmured back and forth. But behind closed doors, other things were whispered. How on earth could they have passed on the same day? Was it a heavenly sign, a bad omen for the Fire Nation? Had something happened between Ursa and Azulan? And the fact that Ozai barely seemed grieved was strange. Had he not just lost two family members? And how that he was the Fire Lord now, even though Iroh, who was off in the Earth Kingdom, was next in line. The whispers quickly corrected themselves—of course, the newly appointed Fire Lord was merely putting on a brave face for his people. It wouldn't be appropriate for him to appear weak or grief-ridden.

The sudden appearance of a glaring scar on the young prince's face was hardly noticed with everything else going on.

A knock on his cabin door broke him out of his thoughts. He struggled to drag himself out of the memories as he turned to see Katara enter his room.

"I'm still not happy with you," she told him sternly.

"No, really, just let yourself in," he muttered. "And I heard you the first time." Zuko was tired, and thinking of his family never put him in a good mood. He didn't want to deal with people right now.

"I thought you could use a hand with your hair," she said, lifting the scissors she had in her hand.

Zuko looked at her, considering telling her to leave, when he saw her throat. "Katara. Your neck," Zuko said. He should have killed Zhao. "It's all bruised." He gently lifted her chin with one hand, while carefully touching her throat with his fingers. Katara shivered as his fingers brushed over her skin.

"Give me a second and I can heal it," she said, trying to step away, but Zuko held her still. He reached around to the back of her necklace and undid it carefully, then let her go. Katara moved to his bureau, where the ice-knot he had taken (had that really only been yesterday morning?) had completely melted in its dish. Gathering the water, Katara faced the mirror and held her hand to her throat.

Zuko stared in fascination as she healed herself. Truly, it was amazing. When she was done she looked at him. "All better. See? Now sit down so I can get to work."

The bruises may be gone, but he wouldn't be forgetting what Zhao had done to her any time soon. He reluctantly sunk to the floor and crossed his legs. Katara knelt behind him, placing the towel he had been holding around his shoulders. Having seen her bend, Zuko couldn't stop the nagging thought that had been bothering him since they had left Zhao's ship. "Katara, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," she said distractedly, as she took off the tie he used to bind his ponytail.

"Back on the ship…when Zhao tried to attack us. Did you do anything?"

Katara stopped moving. "What do you mean?"

"When Zhao stumbled. He's not the type of guy to lose his feet. And I thought I saw you move out of the corner of my eye."

He heard her take a deep breath behind him. After a moment, she answered. "I guess I owe you that much, since you did save me from Zhao. But I'm not supposed to talk about it—especially to firebenders. In fact, the entire thing is forbidden."

"So you did do something!" Zuko turned to face her. "But what?"

Katara met his eyes, and there was a mix of emotions on her face. Quietly, she told him, "I'm a waterbender. And every single living thing has water inside it. Sometimes—under the right conditions—I can manipulate that water. It's called blood-bending, but technically blood doesn't have to be involved."

Zuko stared at her. "Waterbenders can do that? Why haven't I heard of this?"

"It's something that's kept a secret—in fact, I really shouldn't be telling you," Katara admitted. "And few of us—waterbenders—can do it."

"But why don't you use it all the time, then?"

"Because it's—awful!" Katara snapped. Zuko blinked at her, surprised at her outburst. "It's wrong, and unnatural. No single person should have the ability to control another like that—from the inside, turning someone's own body against itself. How would you like it," Katara demanded, "if I forced you to grab these scissors, and forced you to hold them to your throat?"

Zuko stared at her, and Katara realized how heated she had gotten. She cleared her throat. "And besides that, it's dangerous. You saw what happened on the deck back there—I started bleeding just for making him trip. If my focus isn't absolute, if I don't have complete control...not only could I hurt myself, but I could seriously damage a person's body."

"Oh." Zuko dropped his gaze and turned back around, not sure what to say. He couldn't imagine having that type of control of a person. The responsibility…

"I would appreciate if you kept that to yourself," Katara said briskly, thinking once again that she shouldn't have told him anything. She smoothed the towel over his shoulders. "Anyway, there was another thing that I wanted to talk to you about. I want you to teach me how to fight."

"You already know how to fight."

She closed her eyes for a moment. "I think what happened today showed both of us that that isn't true."

Zuko didn't say anything.

"I never want to be helpless like that again," Katara said through gritted teeth. "I have to be honest—without water I'm completely useless."

"But your blood-bending—"

"No. That isn't an option."

"But you used it on Zhao—"

Katara's hands tightened on his shoulders. "I didn't even think about it. It just—came out."

"Why, then? If you're so against using it, why would you immediately resort to it?"

_Because I thought he was going to kill you! _Katara wanted to snap at him. But she kept that to herself, too embarrassed. She was never rational when other people were at risk. "Zuko, please. You were just telling me that you know how to use all of those," she nodded towards the weapons hanging on his wall. "I want you to teach me how to fight, without bending."

He couldn't argue with her desire to learn how to defend herself. "Fine. Keep in mind that I've never taught anyone, before."

"I'm sure you'll be a fine teacher," Katara assured him with a smile. "Now, why don't I actually do what I came here for." She ruffled his hair, now unbound, making him scowl.

Zuko closed his eyes as Katara lifted the scissors, making sure to hold still.

The last time someone had cut his hair…it had been his mother. It seemed like his memories wouldn't leave him alone, today. She had kneeled behind him just like Katara did now, in front of a mirror. Except she had this silly little song that she sang while she did it. Zuko couldn't remember the words. He closed his eyes and tried to remember it. The tune was on the edge of his memory…he tried to focus. Her hands had been on his scalp and shoulders, carefully brushing away the stray hairs. Along with the song she sang, her jewelry clinked as she moved, the bracelets by his ears constantly swinging back and forth and gently tapping together. She laughed as she looked at his lopsided reflection, having only finished one side. She ruffled his hair as he scowled at her, pouting, and he could smell her perfume…

Except something was wrong. Her voice was off, and she didn't smell the same. Zuko opened his eyes and came back to his room, with Katara behind him. She was just finishing. "…looks funny now, but you can shave this fuzz off with your razor. You'll look fine. Besides, I hated that ponytail." She ran her fingers over the bristle that was left. "I saw a dustpan and brush in the galley. Since I made the mess I'll clean it up. I'll be back in second." She stood, brushing her hands on her knees.

"You remind me so much of her."

"I'm sorry?" Katara asked, blinking.

"So much. You act like her," he said quietly.

Katara frowned at him. "What are you talking about?"

"My mother." Zuko looked at her. "You remind me of her." She shouldn't. They didn't look alike. His mother had sleek black hair, she had wavy brown. His mother was thin and waifish, and she was curvy. Ursa was quiet and meek, while Katara was outspoken. The only jewelry she wore was that necklace he had never seen her without. But something in his mind just made the connection.

Katara didn't know what to say. Zuko rarely shared anything about his family. All the time they had talked, both of them had steered clear of his past. So why was he sharing now? "She…she must have been a great woman to have raised you so well," Katara said after a moment. "How…how old were you when she passed?"

_She was murdered_, Zuko wanted to say. _By the man you plan to marry. _But of course he couldn't say that. "I was nine."

With Zuko just standing there, looking more vulnerable than she had ever seen him, Katara wanted to hug him. Embrace him, like she would any other person that was hurting. But Zuko was not any other person. She doubted he would appreciate—or even allow—her comfort. So instead she told him, "I'm sure she would proud of you, Zuko. I'm not going to pretend to know how she felt, but I can imagine she would proud of what you did today."

Zuko gave her a small smile. "She would have hated that I was fighting. She never approved of Agni Kais for honor. But she would have liked that I was standing up for someone who needed help."

"You know, I lost my mother too, when I was little. It isn't easy growing up without them," Katara admitted. "My father was always off fighting, and of course my brother wasn't interested in playing with his baby sister. It can get lonely."

Zuko didn't say anything, but he silently agreed. He had certain felt all alone.

"But, of course, I had my Gran-Gran. And you had Iroh, didn't you?"

Zuko blinked. Yes, yes he did. When Iroh had returned from the Earth Kingdom and found what had happened at home, he could have secluded himself in grief. But he didn't. That first day when he had returned, Zuko remembered seeing him. His uncle, who looked so distant, had turned and set eyes on his bandaged nephew. And the sadness had washed away. Iroh had walked over, knelt down, and gave Zuko a giant hug. It had been improper, considering their ranks, and that other people were watching, but Iroh didn't care. And neither did Zuko. That was the first time he had been held since his mother had gone. If others hadn't been around, Zuko was sure he would have broken down in tears. But he had merely hugged his uncle back while the old man whispered soothing words into his ear.

Katara glanced back at the floor, where the evidence of Zuko's recent haircut lay. "I should go get that dustpan."

"It's alright. You go to bed, I can clean it myself."

"You're sure?"

Zuko nodded and she left. When the door closed behind her, he turned to the mirror to stare at his reflection. Several moments passed, and then he left his cabin. On his way to find a dustpan and broom, he knocked on his Uncle's door.

Iroh invited him inside, and he stuck his head in the room. "Would you like some tea before bed?" his uncle asked, glancing at his newly bald head.

Zuko shook his head. "No. I just wanted to thank you."

"For what?"

"Everything."

Zuko shut the door and continued on. Inside, Iroh blinked owlishly at the door. "You're welcome," he answered quietly.

**XXXXX**

**Let me know if you think the flashbacks were a little too quick or awkward. I had trouble writing them in and making it feel natural, I'm not too keen on flashbacks. Also let me know what you thought of the duel—usually I don't mind writing action, but it feels awkward trying to describe a fight between benders, because it feels so silly writing about shooting flames out of hands and feet while trying to keep it realistic.**

**And some of you might be totally creeped out that Katara reminds Zuko of his mother since this is a Zutara fic, but just bear with me. I feel like there is a nice parallel between them—both are the only females that have ever given Zuko any positive attention, and now that it's looking like Katara is going to be destined to the same fate as Ursa. It's definitely going to play on how Zuko acts later.**

**As always, let me know what you think. Please! I live for the reviews you send my way.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Again, this chapter is a bit skimpy, but I've decided that this is just the way I write. When I try to make longer chapters, it take me quite some time to get around to actually writing them. So, I've decided that it's better to give you something every now and then than having months in between updates.**

**XXXXX**

Katara jerked awake at the noise of someone knocking loudly on her door. Groaning, she sat up. "Yeah?"

"Time for training." Katara recognized Zuko's voice, slightly muffled by the door. "If you still want to do it I'll meet you in the mess in ten."

"Okay," she called, fighting a yawn. She took a few seconds to ground herself, blinking at the wall. With the nightly sparring sessions she'd been having with him, Katara was used to sleeping late. Her body didn't want to get up.

"Well, you asked for this," Katara muttered to herself as she got up.

Ten minutes later she arrived in the mess hall. Zuko already had a place set for her, breakfast waiting. He was just finishing his own meal.

Katara glanced at his head as she sat down, noting that already his hair (though only barely) was beginning to grow back. That was a good thing, because she was having trouble keeping a straight face while looking at his bald and shiny head.

"Those are your training clothes?" Zuko asked, eyeing her outfit, which was her usual dress over pants.

Katara shrugged as she ate, and after swallowing her food said, "I don't have anything else. It didn't occur to me that I might need them." She glanced at his own loose and light clothing. "I'll have to buy some at the next port we stop at."

Zuko fell silent and waited for her to finish her food. Thoughts of the previous night were in the front of his mind. He didn't like that Katara reminded him of his mother. It brought up feelings that he didn't want to deal with. He was just going to have to treat her like any other soldier under his command—admittedly, he had never had to train any of them—and not like a woman. Because that was obviously the connection he was seeing. He just wasn't used to women, that was all. He had only truly known two. His gentle mother Ursa, and his fierce sister Azula. He had fought alongside female soldiers before, but had never gotten to know them. So now that he was faced with a third girl in his life, it made sense that he was trying to categorize her.

Except, the more he thought about it, she didn't closely resemble either of them. Katara may be a fighter like Azula, but she didn't treat him like a rival. And she may be gentle towards him like his mother, she wouldn't stop herself from strongly opposing him when she disagreed. If Azula was yang and Ursa was yin…Katara was somewhere in between. He had felt the fire she had inside her as she sparred with him, but had also seen her in a deep calmness as she practiced her waterbending. He had seen her strong and downright violent with the soldiers on the docks of Yi Chang…and had also seen her at her most vulnerable, helpless and scared at the hands of Zhao.

One thing she undoubtedly shared with his mother, however, was the identity of her betrothed.

Zuko's mind quickly turned from whimsical musing to much darker place. He wished that fact would stop jumping out at him. He didn't want to think about it. At all. Because if he did, that would mean he would have to accept what that meant.

Zuko knew, of course, what he was doing on this ship, what his mission was. He was to bring Katara to the Fire Nation. He had no illusions. He may doubt what his father was doing, and wonder what on earth was going on in his head, but he would do what he was ordered to do.

But that didn't mean he had to think about it and pull it apart and analyze it. He didn't have to think about what came next. Because, as surprised as he was, he liked Katara. He enjoyed spending time with her. Zuko, who had never been particularly close to anyone his age, may have actually come across someone he could call a friend.

So who could blame him for not wanting to think about the future, about what happened in a month's time when they arrived at the palace? He didn't like thinking about how he was happily escorting her from her home, away from her family and people, to a future full of uncertainty, which couldn't possibly hold any joy for her.

He was being selfish. And Zuko didn't care. He was powerless to change the circumstances they were in, so he was going to try his damned hardest to enjoy himself for once. And if Katara wanted him to train her, he was going to do it to make her happy.

He lead her up to the deck when she was finished. The ship had left port at sunrise, and the deck rose and fell gently with the motion of the sea. Telling Katara to copy him, Zuko began to stretch out his arms and shoulders.

"Before I let you anywhere near a blade or any sort of weapon, you're going to learn how to fight with your bare hands. It's the way I was taught, and that's how I'll teach you."

"Makes sense," Katara murmured, grabbing her thumb with her other hand and carefully stretching her wrist.

"Sine you're a bender, this probably won't be hard for you. You're already comfortable with your body and are used to using it." Zuko began to slowly windmill one arm, then the other, loosening his shoulders. Katara mirrored him. "Still, I'm going to take it slow. You're going to want to go faster, but I'll set the pace, and until I'm satisfied we won't go forward." He shook out his arms. "All right, come here."

Katara stepped closer to him, facing him squarely. "First thing you're going to learn is wrist escapes. Chances are, someone is going to try to grab you in a fight—at least, a non-bender will."

He grabbed her wrist with a firm grip. "Without using your bending, or hitting me," he said with a smirk, "try to get away."

Katara tugged. Zuko held on. She tugged again, startled at how much weaker she was. As a bender, she had very little physical contact with an enemy. Another tug, and Zuko was forced to move with her or topple, but he still held on.

Zuko saw the surprise in her face. "Exactly. You can't just tug." He let her go. "Grab my wrist."

Katara did, holding on tight. "Now, I'm physically stronger, so I probably could just tug, but that wouldn't teach you anything. You expect me to go back, just like you did, right?" Katara nodded, watching him expectantly. "So what if I do the opposite?"

Suddenly he stepped closer, shoving his arm out. Katara tried to hold on, but her arm was twisted awkwardly and she was forced to let go, stepping back to keep her balance.

"See? Easy. When someone grabs you, it's usually to pull you closer. So do what the attacker won't expect—go with them. You try."

He grabbed her again. Katara copied his movements, and was foolishly pleased when it worked. "Again." This time he put up some resistance, forcing Katara to work harder. "Once more." She moved, but this time Zuko used his other hand, tapping her cheek with his knuckles. She blinked at him. "Why would someone be pulling you closer?"

"To hit me," she said, looking at his fist.

"Exactly. Keep that other hand up. Always protect your face. Again."

Once Zuko was satisfied, he showed her another technique. "Sometimes having a single tool is good enough, but it never hurts to have several ways to get the same result." He showed her some more wrist escapes. He made her do them several times, often correcting her feet or her hands.

Iroh and a crewmember ended up standing on the deck, watching them. Katara mentioned this to Zuko, embarrassed. He told her to focus and not pay any attention to them. Silently, Katara thought that there wasn't much to focus on, the things he were showing her were all quite simple. But he had said that he was going to start slow, and it was good that he was showing her something she could handle and nothing too difficult. So Katara kept her mouth shut and continued doing as he told her.

However, when Zuko stopped some time later and said that was enough, Katara couldn't stop herself. "That's it?" she exclaimed, disappointed.

Zuko frowned at her. "Look, I know it's nothing special. At first you're going to be bored. But I'm teaching you the basics. And you can't learn more until you master the basics."

Katara didn't argue. He was right. Waterbending was the same way—you couldn't create a tidal wave before learning how to create a ripple. Of course she couldn't leap into the advanced things without learning the foundations.

Seeing that the two of them were finished, Iroh walked forward. "You two looked busy," he said.

"I asked Zuko to show me how to fight without bending."

"Every lady should know how to defend herself," Iroh said approvingly.

Katara smiled at him. "It's nice to hear you say that. At home…" she trailed off, looking away.

"At home, what?" Iroh asked.

Katara shrugged. "No so much in the South…but the North Pole. They don't like it when the women fight."

"You mentioned that," Zuko said. "Didn't you tell me that you fought Pakku for the right to learn?"

"Really?" Iroh asked, raising his eyebrows. "I met him once…can't say that it was an enjoyable experience, with us being on different sides and all. But he was a masterful bender." He chuckled. "I would have paid to see that fight."

Katara shook her head. "Oh, goodness, no. I was a mess afterwards. I think the only reason he didn't thrash me was that I was the granddaughter of the girl he loved. He and my Gran-Gran were sweethearts when they were young."

"Oh ho, nothing better than a love story," Iroh mused. "What happened?"

Katara grinned. "Well, she wouldn't bow to the stupid rules of the Nothern Water Tribe. She was fed up with the men of her tribe trying to run her life, so she left and joined the more open-minded tribe in the South."

Iroh grinned. "Not exactly a romantic love story, then. She must have been a very strong woman. See, Zuko, let this be a lesson to you. Never force a lady to be something she isn't. She will never appreciate it."

Zuko sputtered. "This is not the time to be giving dating advice!"

XXXXX

Lunchtime passed, and then Katara and Zuko sparred. They were no longer meeting at night, as Zuko no longer had the night watch, and they still wanted to get their daily (or, what had previously been nightly) practice.

Katara reveled in finally being able to go at the pace she wanted, and was happy to have her waterbending back. While their morning practice hadn't been fast paced or dangerous, Katara didn't like not being able to use her number one go-to tool.

The crewmembers that weren't occupied with their duties stood on deck and watched the couple's mock fight. This time Katara didn't even notice their presence until she and Zuko had stopped, and was startled by the applause. She frantically waved away their clapping, while Zuko merely scowled at them.

"That's one way to stay in shape during a long journey like this," Captain Jee said, walking up to them. "I myself wouldn't mind some exercise. I'm sure some of the other crew feel the same. Would you mind if we joined you on occasion?"

Katara beamed. "I would love that! I think it'd be great for me to practice with different people. Having a different partner from time to time would only help."

Zuko fought the sudden urge to argue. _No, _he wanted to say. _She only works with me. I don't want her fighting with other people. _He kept his mouth firmly shut, however. It wasn't his decision. And she was right, she should practice with others.

That didn't stop him from being jealous, however. Which was ridiculous. It was silly of him to think that he had the right to keep Katara all to himself. But that was just it. He didn't want to share her.

He tried to push these thoughts away as he entered his quarters later, still annoyed at how quickly Katara had jumped at the chance of a new partner. Wasn't he good enough? Was she bored? Now more than ever he wished he hadn't agreed to give up night watch. At least then it was only him and Katara, no interruptions.

As he prepared for bed, something caught his eye. He turned to his dresser and saw Katara's necklace. Picking it up, Zuko ran his thumb over the pattern, then turned and left his room.

XXXXX

Katara opened her door and looked at Zuko. "What is it? I was getting ready to sleep, if we're getting up at the same time tomorrow."

"I forgot to return this to you last night," Zuko said, leaning against the doorframe and dangling her necklace by the ribbon. He offered it to her. "Here."

Katara blushed, staring at the pendant in his hand. Even though it was her grandmother's…Katara had never been offered a marriage necklace by a man before. While she knew he had no idea of her traditions, she felt as if he was holding out a bouquet of flowers to her. "Zuko…"

"Why are you getting red like that? What is it?"

She looked up at him, embarrassed. "I never told you what that was. It's an engagement gift." Blushing deeper, she continued, "In my culture, when a man offers a woman a necklace like that, it means he wishes to marry her."

Zuko blinked, then glanced at the necklace in his hand. He quickly closed his fist around it. "Oh, uh. Well, obviously, that's not what I'm doing. Because, you know." He went to give it to her again, then pulled his arm back. Mortification crept up his spine as he felt his face heat up.

"Obviously," Katara agreed, looking down at her feet.

"Not that I'm saying I wouldn't—," Zuko rushed to say, worried he had offended her. "Because you're—you know what, never mind." He strode past her and dropped the necklace on the bed. "There. No proposal." He cleared his throat. "I'll see you tomorrow then," he said, then left.

Katara stared at the door for a few moments after he had gone, then turned to her bed. She carefully picked up the pendant, then turned to the mirror and put it on. If she hadn't been so embarrassed, she would have been amused by how flustered Zuko had gotten. But she wasn't anyone to talk.

As she climbed into bed, Katara mused over the situation. Not exactly the proposal she had imagined when she was a little girl. A firebender, offering her a marriage necklace! A smile crossed her lips. Oh, her father and brother would be spitting mad.

But then again…Zuko actually wasn't so different than what she had imagined. Eyes closed, Katara recalled the fantasies she used to have as a little girl, before the conflict between nations had really begun to affect her life.

She had always imagined that her warrior—because of course he had to be strong like her daddy!—would be tall and dark and brave. He would come home after a victory, and rush over to her and sweep her off her feet, and kiss her in the way naive and innocent little girls would imagine. Then her handsome fighter would set her down, and out of his pocket he would hold up a necklace, one he had painstakingly crafted himself, and offer it to her. He would whisper, "Katara, you are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. I want to marry you and have you as my wife." And then they would live happily ever after, with her husband away fighting for their country and hunting with the men while she stayed home and raised their children.

Of course, that fantasy seemed so foolish now. Katara would rather now be called strong than beautiful. And she didn't fancy the idea of man saying he wanted her as his wife, as if she was an object to covet. And Katara was no longer interested in keeping house while the men were away fighting. Ever since her mother died…well. She had long since outgrown that fantasy.

But she would be lying if the image of Zuko standing in the doorway and offering her an engagement gift hadn't made her heart lurch a little. Half asleep, Katara mused that Zuko wouldn't be so bad. He was smart, and respected her—which was an extremely important trait, with her coming from a culture that thought women who wanted to fight where strange and foolish. And he was a superb fighter, an attraction that Katara had never grown out of. Even though he was a firebender—something that she would have been horrified by when she was little—all the conversations they had had together showed that there was more to him than met the eye. The fact he was a prince…well, that would have made little girl Katara squeal with joy and jump at him. Big girl Katara wasn't quite as enamored with the idea, but hey, no one was perfect.

It was too bad, she thought sleepily. While she wouldn't have been thrilled with the idea of marrying the prince of the Fire Nation, now that she had gotten to know him she thought that perhaps it wouldn't be so bad. They could have been friends, at least. Perhaps better than a marriage she could have had amongst a Tribesman.

It really was such a shame.

XXXXX

Zuko leaned against the watch tower's base, knees drawn up to his chest and arms wrapped around them. They had put some distance between themselves and the South Pole, but the nights were still chilly.

After lying on his bed for an hour, completely awake, Zuko had given up and walked up to the deck. He wished that he could completely blame his insomnia on the fact that for the past few weeks he had the night watch and usually didn't go to sleep until much later. But that wasn't totally true.

His face still grew hot when he thought about it. Damn the Water Tribe and their strange customs. Really, how was he supposed to know about their weird proposal traditions?

The surprised look on her face was still in his mind. And that blush that had covered her cheeks. As if, for one moment, she had thought he meant it. And why on earth had _he _been so embarrassed? He had gotten so flustered, when really, it shouldn't have bothered him. Zuko dropped his face against his arms. He had acted so…like a flustered child! He was supposed to be calm and collected, damn it. His uncle would have had a field day with his reaction if he had seen it.

"_It's an engagement gift_," her voice echoed in his head. _"In my culture, when a man offers a woman a necklace like that, it means he wishes to marry her."_

Zuko jerked his head up. If it was meant as an engagement gift…_who had given it to her?_

Zuko glared at the moon above him, a lopsided circle now. He wasn't getting any sleep tonight, apparently.

XXXXX

_Zhao stared at the wall of his cell. His mind had been whirling ever since they had closed the door on him._

_ The Fire Lord had ordered him to make that stupid water bitch look like she wanted to break the marriage contract. He was supposed to make her look like the villain in the eyes of the Fire Nation people, disgrace her…when all he had done was disgrace himself. She had even demanded that he be thrown at the feet of her soon-to-be husband as a wedding present!_

_ Zhao knew how that would be received. The Fire Nation people would love her. She—the sympathetic, young, beautiful girl—had been attacked by a man the people thought was hero, a man who was supposed to be a great role model. And not only had she survived, she demanded that he be tried for treason against the Fire Lord. The people of the Nation would love her for her fire and tenacity._

_ Ozai was going to be furious._

_ Zhao had no illusions. Ozai would see him as a failure. He would not protect him._

_ So Zhao had to protect himself._

_ He had few options. He could escape, and go on the run. He would never be able to return to the Fire Nation if he did, and that would leave the Earth Kingdom…which he had spent his entire career attacking. While not many people knew his face, it would only take one veteran soldier who had survived a battle against him to bring everything down. Even if he escaped enemy detection, he had no money to support himself, and would forever fear Fire Nation assassins. The Fire Lord never took kindly to deserters._

_ His other option…_

_ He still might be able to disgrace the Water Tribe girl. Or…better yet, kill her._

_ Zhao liked that idea. He could already imagine his hands squeezing the life out of her. Ozai would be pleased, wouldn't he? If Zhao got rid of his problem? He would have to do it quietly, of course. Make it look like an accident…or perhaps like an earth bender did it? An enemy to the Nation?_

_ Yes, that could work. He would have to get rid of Iroh and the Prince, though. Couldn't have any witnesses left to what he had done. Zhao smiled as he imagined killing that damn excuse for royalty. Their Agni Kai had been a fluke. The next time Zhao wouldn't lose…_

_ Iroh would be a problem. He didn't have the name Dragon for nothing. But he was aging, and flabby, if their last meeting gave any indication._

_ The Fire Lord had never seem inclined to either of them. Surely he wouldn't mind if they died in a tragic accident that took out the entire crew of their ship. It would make the girl's death look even more believable!_

_ Nodding to himself, Zhao grinned. Ozai was sure to reward him. His plan was perfect._

**XXXXX**

**So, in case you couldn't tell, Zhao's gone off the deep end. I think the fear of having the Fire Lord wanting him dead would make Zhao unable to think clearly.**

**I forced some more Zutara action in this one, but it felt a little flat to me. I have this concrete idea of how I want their relationship to be, and since it's not there yet I'm struggling a bit. And if the slow pace is annoying me, it must be terrible for my readers. Sorry about that.**

**As a side note/question for your opinion…I had Zuko act a little, dorky, I guess is the word, with the necklace scene. And while this is how I'm going to keep his character, I was wondering my readers' take on this. Because I felt like whenever we did get to see him being romantic, he sometimes ended up being a doofus or a screw up. I've read fics where he's slick and flirty and girls would jump at the chance to be with him (and I'm not complaining, I read those fics with joy!), but I don't get that vibe from him. He actually kind of reminds me of Draco Malfoy with how the fandom treats him, because the fandom makes Malfoy out to be **_**the **_**sex god of Hogwarts…but in canon he didn't really live up to it. Your thoughts?**


	9. Chapter 9

**Apologies for how long this took, but I was really unhappy with this for a while. I realized I was setting this up to go in a different direction than what I had originally planned, so I took some time to replan and tweak things.**

**XXXXX**

The next day went very much the same, with Katara waking up early and meeting Zuko in the mess hall. He was quiet while they ate, and hardly said a word when they walked up to the deck.

He began with stretching exercises once again, and then made her perform the techniques he had taught her the previous day, making sure she remembered everything. Once she passed his inspection, he agreed to teach her more.

Katara wondered at his attitude as he showed her how to escape an attacker who grabbed her shoulders. He seemed…different, today. Distant? Was that the word? Impatient with her? His stern face and manner today reminded her of how he first acted towards her when they met.

Had she annoyed him somehow? Did he find this boring, was he regretting his agreement to teach her? Or, was he acting strange because of what had happened the previous night? Was he embarrassed about it, and was putting on an indifferent face to pretend it never happened?

"Katara, are you paying attention?" Zuko demanded, while she was struggling with a certain movement. "I just showed you how to do this."

"No, I have it," she said, knocking his hand off her like she had been taught. "See? It just took me a second."

He frowned at her but didn't comment, moving on to the next method.

After teaching her another small set of techniques, Zuko ended their session. Other crewmembers who didn't have any responsibilities had arrived, and Zuko suggested she work with some of them.

Katara ended up with another firebender, Captain Jee's second, an older man named Ping. He asked if she would be willing to spar using their elements, and Katara happily agreed, excited at the idea of working with someone who she wasn't familiar with.

They didn't have very much space, considering the other members who had were also practicing on deck. With that in mind they were cautious, merely testing each other out, but Katara still had fun. Ping fought much more traditionally than Zuko, and wasn't as nimble, so he wasn't leaping about and spinning the way Katara was used to. He clearly had much more experience on the battlefield, however, and it showed. At the end of their match Katara was worn out. She smiled at Ping when he walked over to shake her hand. He was smiling as well.

"You surprised me, young lady. I had no idea that you would fight so well. You gave my old bones a run for their money."

Katara thanked him for the compliment, and then walked over to Iroh, who was watching from the side of the deck. "Not joining in?" she asked.

Iroh smiled and shook his head. "No, I'm perfectly content watching the others. You had a good match with Ping, my lady."

"Thank you. I'm so used to Zuko as my partner that it was a bit of shock having someone else."

Iroh chuckled. "Yes, that happens. You must be careful about that."

Katara leaned against the railing and sank down it, sitting on the cool metal of the deck. She looked for Zuko, and found him fighting with Captain Jee. They were both brandishing dual dao swords, circling each other.

Katara sat up straight in excitement. She had never seen Zuko fight with swords before.

They clashed back and forth along the deck, swords glinting in the sun. The few members that were practicing as well quickly cleared away, not wanting to be anywhere near the fighters with weapons. It only took moments of watching to recognize that Zuko knew what he was doing with them. Both he and the Captain where fighting hard, near ferocious. Katara watched in awe as they went back and forth. Jee had sweat through his shirt, and Zuko had apparently shed his sometime before. Katara wondered if that was how he looked when he fought her. She doubted that. The pure intensity in his eyes as he fought with Jee…Katara would have remembered it.

Again, the same idea that had come to her the previous night wandered into her mind. As she watched him, she wondered…what if Zuko was the man who was chosen to be her husband?

Katara wasn't sure what she was looking for, but watching him only made her think that it wouldn't be so bad. While she was embarrassed to admit it, she had always been attracted to fighters. And, well...seeing Zuko fighting without a shirt didn't help matters.. Of course, she had fought with him, felt his muscles through his clothes…but now that she was just a spectator, and able to actually see what lay under his shirt, it was a whole different matter.

Realizing that she had been staring, Katara blushed and shook her head. None of that. It wouldn't do for her to be thinking like that, especially about the son of the man she was supposed to marry.

The reminder of Ozai quickly sobered her attitude. Did he teach Zuko to fight like that? Katara couldn't remember hearing about the Fire Lord wielding swords, but she had no trouble imagining that Zuko got that snarl from his father.

Jee and Zuko stopped their fight, bowing to each other to signal they were both done. Katara got to her feet as Zuko walked towards her and Iroh.

"You're getting better," Iroh praised, smiling.

Zuko merely nodded and bent down, scooping up his shirt from the deck. He wiped his face with it. "They've gotten a little dull," he told his uncle, holding up the swords with one hand. "And I don't have what I need to sharpen them."

Iroh leaned in and carefully ran his thumb over the edge of one. "You're right. Well, next time we're at port I'm sure you can go to a blacksmith and have them sharpen it for you."

"Some of the crewmembers might have their own sharpening tools," Katara suggested. "I had no idea you were so good with those," she added, admiring the weapons.

Zuko tugged the shirt into place, not saying anything.

Katara frowned. He was acting strange, it wasn't her imagination. "Maybe I could go with you when you go? I'd love to look around."

"Maybe," he mumbled, noncommittally.

"Zuko, when a beautiful young lady asks for your company you gladly accept," Iroh scolded. Zuko rolled his eyes and turned away. Still frowning at his nephew, Iroh told Katara, "I would happily go with you, Katara. I've been at the port in question before, so I could easily escort you."

Katara smiled at him. "Thank you. I'm glad someone is happy to spend time with me," she said, shooting a venomous look at Zuko's back.

He whirled around. "Excuse me if I don't feel like being dragged along while you run your stupid little errands. I don't have time to babysit you."

"Babysit me!" Katara glared at him, then let out an exasperated growl. "Fine! I don't know where this attitude of yours came from, but if you want to act like a spoiled brat, go ahead. I'm not going to stand around and argue with you, jerk." She tossed up her hands and stormed away.

Iroh turned to his nephew. "What on earth has gotten into you? Did you two have a fight I don't know about? You seemed perfectly alright with each other yesterday!"

Zuko scowled. "Do you know that she was engaged when she was in the Water Tribes?"

"What?" Iroh blinked at him, confused. "How would you know?"

"She practically told me! That necklace she's always wearing? It's a betrothal gift."

"Even if that's true, what does it matter? It was probably just a parting gift."

"She's—she's supposed to marry the Fire Lord! She can't have sweethearts all over the place. What if one of them tries to cause trouble?"

Iroh sighed. "Zuko, you're making this bigger than it is. Perhaps it was given to her by family. It could be an heirloom—you know how women pass down jewelry when their daughters come of age. And even if she did have a sweetheart—which I highly doubt—there is nothing he could do. A single man against all of the Fire Nation—and the Water Tribes?"

Zuko looked away, annoyed by his uncle's logic. What he was saying made complete sense. There was no need for him to get all worked up.

"And, if she did have someone, try to imagine her point of view. You shouldn't get angry, Zuko. She's made her decision. She's agreed to leave everything she knows, family, friends—maybe even a man who loves her—to do this. Imagine the strength that requires. After all the pain she's been through…do you really think that she would let a single man stand in her way?"

XXXXX

Katara glared out over the water. She had no idea why Zuko was acting the way he was. She thought that they had begun to form a decent friendship, but apparently she was wrong. Friends didn't get angry at each other for no reason—and Katara couldn't think of anything she had done to upset him.

She was surprised at how much his sudden behavior hurt her. After all this time, Katara thought maybe this journey wouldn't be so bad. Iroh had been pleasant to her, and she looked forward to the time she spent the Zuko. Really, he was the only one she talked to on the ship. The only one who she wanted to spend time with. And if he was going to start being unpleasant to her…well…

_That's just like a firebender,_Katara thought darkly. _Turning on the ones who trust them when they least expect it._

She glared hard at her hands, then realized that was unfair. She was stereotyping again, falling back on her belief that no firebender could be trusted. Just because Zuko was being moody didn't mean that every single firebender in the world was evil. Maybe he had a reason for his actions.

Was it possible he was having as much trouble accepting what was happening as she did? If Katara was struggling with the idea that all firebenders weren't evil, maybe he was fighting with the idea that he was becoming friends with a waterbender.

That realization made a lot of sense to her, all of a sudden. Hadn't she jumped at the chance to believe, the second that Zuko had been rude to her, that he had never truly been interested in being her friend? Maybe he was looking for an excuse to put distance between them.

Or maybe Katara was just desperate enough to have someone be nice to her that she was willing to forgive how Zuko was acting, as long as he talked to her.

Groaning, Katara shook her head. "Don't think like that," she grumbled to herself, turning around.

And practically walking straight into Zuko.

She jumped back, startled. Zuko raised his hands in apology. "Sorry, I didn't mean to sneak up on you."

Blushing, Katara glared at him. "What do you want?" she asked, not very nicely.

Zuko winced at her tone. "I think I should apologize. My uncle—"

"If you're just apologizing because your uncle told you to, then save your breath." Katara turned her back on him.

He wanted to snap at her, but Zuko grit his teeth and kept quiet. He was the one who had acted like a jerk first. "Look, I was just—annoyed—with something, and I took it out on you. It won't happen again." Deciding that that was as much as he needed to say, Zuko turned away.

"What were you annoyed about?"

He stopped, surprised at her question. "What?"

She was facing him again. "Was it me? Did I annoy you?" Katara wished that she didn't want his friendship so bad, but it was all she had right now. "I didn't mean to embarrass you last night."

"No, it wasn't you," Zuko muttered, glancing at her necklace, then away before she could notice.

Katara wanted to ask him what it was that was bothering him, then. For him to talk to her. But she didn't think he would tell her. And she didn't to seem so interested. Instead she nodded, and turned away. Zuko was going to leave, thinking their conversation was over, when she asked quietly, "Do you think that two people from the Fire Nation and the Water Tribes could ever get along?"

"Katara, just because we had a little fight doesn't mean—"

"I don't mean us, specifically," Katara said, shaking her head. "I just want to know if you think that the people of your homeland and my homeland could ever get along."

Zuko opened his mouth, about to dismiss her, but then he changed his mind. He thought for a moment, then answered seriously, "Well, they did once. Before."

_Before your grandfather declared war on the world? Before your people slaughtered all of the Air Nomads, attempted to invade the Earth Kingdom, killed my mother?_Katara bit her tongue. She tried to keep that dark hatred deep inside herself, but it was always there. "That's true," she said softly. "But what about now? After…everything?"

"Well, that's what this whole journey is about, isn't it?" Zuko asked, tip-toeing around the issue. He felt cowardly, but he didn't have the heart to really speak his mind to her. "That's what you're here for, so do you believe it?"

"That's not what I asked," Katara said. She turned to him. Zuko wanted to walk away, but she pinned him with a look that was almost pleading. "Do you think that our people can ever get along?"

"Katara…" Zuko sighed.

"Answer the question!" she demanded, grabbing his arm when it looked like he would turn away.

"I—"

There was a sudden, tremendous screeching noise of metal on metal, and the ship gave a sudden lurching stop. Katara and Zuko were both thrown forward against the rail. Katara let out a shrill shriek as she went over. Zuko desperately grabbed for her, but lost hold of her as he struck the railing, gasping as the wind was knocked out of him. He hung over the edge, still reaching, as Katara splashed into the water and disappeared.

"Katara!" he yelled hoarsely, deaf to all the yelling and shouting that was happening on deck. He stared at the white foamy ripples that were left from where she fell, eyes darting around to see where she came back up. His stomach coiled in panic. When she didn't immediately resurface, Zuko spun to face the deck. "Man overboard!" he bellowed over all the other noises. "Get me a line, now!"

He leaned back over, knuckles white as he grasped the railing. "Katara!" he yelled again, as if she could hear him.

A man ran up beside him. "She went over?" he gasped, passing Zuko a coil of rope.

"What happened?" he demanded.

"Ship hit something, sir. We don't know what."

"You mean something could be in the water?" He was getting ready to jump in after her when Katara's dark head broke the surface, gasping for air. "Katara!" Zuko shouted, relief coursing through him. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" she shouted back, coughing. She pushed her hair out of her face and treaded water. "Is everyone alright? What happened?"

"The ship hit something!" the deckhand—Ping, Zuko realized—called back to her.

"Grab the line!" Zuko shouted, tossing the rope over. "We'll pull you up!"

Katara raised her hand to shield herself as the rope splashed next to her. "I'm going down to see what the ship hit!"

"What? No! Katara, just get back up here—" Zuko yelled, but she had already taken a deep breath and dove back down. His panic returned as she vanished from his view. He stared for a few seconds, then passed the rope back to Ping. "Tie that off," he ordered him, as he yanked off his shoes.

"You're going in after her?" Ping questioned, incredulous.

"We don't know what's down there! I've heard stories about the giant eel monsters they have in these areas." He yanked off his shirt.

Ping frowned, not wanting to directly question his superior. "Sir—she's a waterbender—and you're—"

"Going to drag her back onto this boat," Zuko snapped, putting a foot on the rail.

His rescue was cut short, however, when Katara popped above the surface. Shaking the water out of her face, she called, "I think it's another ship! It looks like it sunk a while ago, there's barnacles all over it and it's falling apart." She swam over to the rope and grabbed it. "We've got problems—our ship's taking water."

Zuko and Ping began to tug her up, hand over hand. When she was close enough, Zuko reached over and grabbed her, pulling her back onto the deck. Holding her arms, he ducked his head to look her in the eyes. "Are you alright?" he demanded.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Katara said, a little startled by his concern.

Zuko looked her up and down as if he hadn't heard her. Katara frowned at him. "Didn't you have a shirt on when I went over?" she asked, wondering if she actually had hit her head.

"He was going to jump in after you, ma'am," Ping said, nodding towards the pile Zuko had made with his shirt and shoes.

Katara blinked down at it, then rose an eyebrow at him. "You were going to jump in after me? Did you forget I'm a waterbender?"

Zuko scowled at her. "Well, excuse me for being concerned," he snapped, releasing her.

Katara opened her mouth, then remembered their bigger problem. "I need to get down below. I'll be able to stop the water from inside." She stepped past him and hurried across the deck.

Zuko glared after her for a moment, then angrily began stuffing his feet back into his shoes. "Let's get down there and see if we can help," he growled at Ping, snatching his shirt up.

XXXXX

They eventually managed to stem the flow of water, keeping the ship from sinking. While Katara bent the water to keep it out of the ship, the firebenders aboard heated the damaged metal hull enough so it was flexible, and forced it back together, melting it into a rough seal. It wasn't pretty, but it would keep the ship from sinking.

After that disaster had been averted, Katara set up shop in the mess hall. She dealt with the injuries sustained during the collision—mostly bumps and bruises, the worst a concussion and broken wrist.

Zuko and Iroh oversaw moving the ship away from the sunken hazard, ordering men out on the ship boats and having them tug it away. They didn't drag the ship completely onto the shore, but they pulled it into shallower water and anchored it so that if it did begin to take on water, they would not lose it completely. It was growing dark by the time they were done.

Katara slumped over a table as the crew met back in the mess, exhausted from the day's work. Jee was giving a report of the situation.

"I think the keel is damaged, which would make the ship near impossible to navigate. And there's still a possibility that the seal could break. The quick patch job that was done weakened the metal, and I do not trust to take the ship back into rougher waters until we have an expert come and examine it, maybe repair it."

"How long will that take?"

Jee sighed. "Luckily, I know of a town nearby that should have men experienced with shipbuilding. However, it's a day's walk away, at least. I'll be sending out a group tomorrow morning. So, best case scenario, three days. And that's only if the ship is cleared for travel. Otherwise, it could take some time. Repairing this ship will be difficult—we wouldn't be able to do repairs here, so it would have to be towed to a harbor with the proper shipwrights."

Iroh cut in, "We think it'll be best if we move what we can off the ship in case she starts taking on water again. We have what we need to set up a temporary camp along the shoreline. A small group will be kept on board to monitor the situation here, but I want everyone else on land for now."

Katara wondered how comfortable it would be to live in a camp with these men, presumably in tents. Lovely. And this would mean that this journey was going to take even longer.

Then again, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It wasn't as if she was eager to get to the Fire Nation palace.

XXXXX

It was well into the night by the time Zuko found Katara leaning against a tree, eyes closed. He hesitated, wondering if perhaps she was asleep, when she opened her eyes and cocked her head up at him. "Hey," she said tiredly.

"Hey." Zuko smiled down at her. "What are you doing over here?"

Katara shrugged, glancing to where the rest of the crew was, farther down the shore. "I don't know how they still have any energy left. They've worked all day, and they're still up, drinking and joking with each other. I just needed somewhere quiet."

"You've worked hard, too," Zuko told her. He spotted a large log of driftwood and dragged it over. He felt his body ache in response, protesting the long day of lifting and heaving and carrying it'd been put through. Setting it alight, Zuko sat down beside her heavily with a groan.

"You sound tired too," she noted, watching as the flame slowly licked around the wood. "I guess we're all tired. It's been a long day."

He merely hummed in response, staring at the fire. They sat like that for some time, soaking up the warmth. "Those colors are different," Katara murmured after a while, watching the blue and green flames.

"I think it has something to do with the salt. Chemicals and whatnot."

Katara smiled. "It's pretty."

Zuko turned his head so he could see her face. "Yeah, pretty." He watched her, then looked back at the fire. "I'm glad you're all right," he said quietly.

It was Katara's turn to look at him. "Thanks. I didn't mean to make fun of you back there. It's just—where I come from, falling into the water isn't any big deal."

"I was worried that something was in the water, that one of those giant eel monsters had knocked into the ship."

"Oh. Well, that would be a problem then," Katara said seriously. And then she was giggling, then all out laughing. Zuko joined in with her. The exhaustion of the day had caught up with them, and now they couldn't stop themselves. They laughed until their sides hurt, wheezing and pushing at each other, tears in their eyes. Eventually they calmed down, but they made the mistake of looking at each other, with their bright red faces, and started laughing all over again.

Finally they managed to quiet themselves, leaning back against the tree, the very last giggles working their way out of their system. A slight chill had crept into the air, and Katara leaned against Zuko, grateful for the warmth he gave off. "I haven't laughed like that in a while," Katara admitted. Not since she had left home. "Thank you."

"I haven't laughed like that ever," Zuko admitted with brutal honesty. Katara twisted to see his face. He looked down at her. "So thank you…for falling off the ship today."

She snorted and shoved him, then settled back against him. "Jerk," she muttered. Zuko didn't argue. Instead, he licked his lips, and then blurted out, "Katara, where'd you get your necklace?"

"It was my mother's," Katara told him sleepily. "Why?"

"No reason."

Katara was too tired to press him. Sitting like this, warm and exhausted, she could barely keep her eyes open. It had been a long, long time since she had felt like this. Content. Relaxed. Safe. If she had the energy, she would have mused at the irony of it all—feeling completely safe while alone with a firebender. Laughable. But it was the truth.

Zuko settled his arm around her when her breathing evened out and she drifted off to sleep. It felt good, sitting with her like this. It felt…right. He couldn't even bother himself to be concerned with getting her back to camp, where she had a tent all to herself. There was no desire in him at all to leave this spot.

So he sat there, with Katara lying against him, and watched the fire slowly die. By the time it finally burned itself out, Zuko had fallen asleep as well, arm around her. His final thought before he drifted off was that he had never answered Katara's question.

XXXXX

**While this is short, I'm happy with it. Usually I have something to complain about, but that isn't the case this time (maybe that's because I whipped this out in a day and haven't had long enough to agonize over it).**

**Updates for this will again be slow, sorry about that. I'm back to working every single day again, so we'll see how this works out. For anyone interested, I've made myself a tumblr account specifically for my writing, which I'll use for any updates, if I make any, under the name maydreiwrites. I think it's much simpler than posting on my profile page, because really, who looks at that?**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry for the wait in this one. I got a little wrapped up in some other fandoms, included Legend of Korra (which is awesome, for those of you who still haven't gotten around to it), and ended up getting sidetracked. Prepare for a chapter heavy in dialog and angst…sorry about that.**

XXXXX

As Zuko began to wake up the following morning, he was first aware that he was sitting up, not lying down. Which was odd. And that his neck and back hurt, presumably from falling asleep propped up against what felt like a tree. And what the hell was the weight on his legs?

He cracked his eyes open and was surprised to see Katara using his lap as a pillow. He frowned down at her, trying to blink away his confusion and piecing the previous night back together.

Ah. That was right. His gaze traveled out over the water and settled on the ship. They had struck a wreck and had to evacuate. He looked back at Katara. If it wasn't for her bending skills, they probably would have lost their ship.

Gently, he reached forward and pushed her dark hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear. She was still deep asleep, curled up against his side. His hand remained on her hair, running the waves of it through his fingers. It was surprising how she could bind it all into a slim braid, with how thick it was…

Awareness suddenly came to him. What was he doing? What were _they_ doing? It wasn't appropriate for the two of them to be away from the rest of the crew and so…intimate. What would the crew think, if they saw them together like this?

Zuko quickly withdrew his hand and glanced over at the camp. It was just before dawn, and he didn't see anyone moving out and about. The few men he did see were prostrate on the ground outside the tents, apparently having fallen asleep where they lay.

Relieved, Zuko turned back to Katara and carefully began drawing himself away, easing out from under her. She didn't even stir as he cautiously took her head and lowered it to the grass. Zuko blessed his luck and got to his feet.

Alright. Well. What did he do? Maybe he should slip back into his tent and pretend that they hadn't spent the night together. No, Iroh would have known he wasn't in the tent they were sharing. He could pretend he had fallen asleep outside with the others. Sure, that would work.

But…did he leave her there? Carrying her back to camp didn't seem like a good idea. Should he…get her a blanket or something?

No, he rationalized. It was almost time for the day to start, she would be fine alone. He looked down at her for a few moments longer, than began walking in the other direction.

Moving through the camp, Zuko was reassured to see that he had been right and that no one was awake, besides himself. He could have just picked a spot on the ground behind the tent that was appointed to him and Iroh and pretend to wake up with the rest of the crew…but instead he kept walking. Past the camp, past the ship boats that had been pulled up on the small bit of beach, putting as much distance as he could between himself and Katara.

When he finally walked far enough away to reach another small grove of trees, Zuko stopped. His sore back and neck were bothering him, and he began to shake them out, sighing.

What the hell was he getting himself into?

He had been stupid the previous night. His intentions had been completely innocent when he had sought her out, wishing to get away from the rowdiness of the men.

But he wasn't thinking. He shouldn't have allowed himself to fall asleep. He shouldn't have allowed _her_ to fall asleep. He should have escorted her back to camp when she began dozing off, not let her fall asleep snuggled against him! If anyone had seen…first it would be just laughing jokes, nothing more. Or maybe the men would have pretended that they hadn't seen anything. But they would have started to pay closer attention, put his and Katara's relationship under scrutiny, made it awkward for both of them. Because if the crew suspected anything was happening between the two, they would have been bound to report it.

The future bride of Ozai could not be suspected of…dallying with anyone, least of all the Fire Lord's own son.

Zuko groaned and ran a hand over his scalp, scuffing the hair that was beginning to grow back. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He hadn't been thinking at all. Oh, sure, he had gotten up in arms when he suspected Katara of having a sweetheart at home, citing that it wouldn't be appropriate…but he hadn't considered that _he _could be considered much of the same, depending on his behavior.

Zuko couldn't imagine the repercussions if people began to believe that he and Katara were…involved, but it wouldn't be positive. And a cold fear struck him as he imagined his father's reaction. It wouldn't matter to the Fire Lord whether or not something truly did happen between his son and the future bride…but he would not put up with the dishonor, the rumors that his very own son had taken what was supposed to be his.

Zuko swallowed hard, remember the searing pain from when his father had branded his face all those years ago. That would probably feel like nothing, compared to…

Zuko shook his head and stopped that line of thought. There was no point in thinking of things that would never happen. Because they wouldn't. He wouldn't allow it. He could certainly be Katara's friend, but he could be nothing more. And it wasn't as if he wanted to be anything more, anyway. Right? Zuko expected to feel reassured at that thought, but instead he felt his stomach knot up.

He didn't have time for this. Pushing those thoughts out of his head, Zuko returned to camp.

XXXXX

Katara opened her eyes and stared at the grass for a few seconds, then gave her body a great big stretch and rolled onto her back. Ugh, why had she fallen asleep curled up like that? Her back was going to bother her all morning now.

She squinted up at the tree branches above her. Hadn't Zuko been with her last night? He was gone now. It was nice of him to leave her there in the middle of the night while he left for the comfort of his tent.

Well, maybe he hadn't wanted to wake her up. Katara wasn't sure if she would have woken him if he had been fast asleep beside her. And perhaps she should thank him. Last night had been the first night she hadn't had some sort of nightmare about what had happened between her and Zhao.

She hadn't mentioned it to anyone, since she wasn't even sure if she should, but lately she had been thinking about it a lot. The nightmares weren't always that terrifying, usually she just woke up unsettled, but it had really gotten under her skin.

Katara had never thought of herself as defenseless. As weak. In any confrontation, she had always been able to protect herself if there was serious danger. Take away her water, and what did she have?

_Bloodbending, _the dark part of her whispered. _You are never truly defenseless._

Katara scowled. No. She never wanted to do that again. When Zhao had attacked her, had pinned her down, she hadn't been able to fight. The terror that had threatened to overwhelm her rang in her memory. She never wanted to make someone else feel that betrayal of their own body, whether they were trying to hurt her or not.

_Oh really? Are you just going to rely on the mercy of stronger men, then? What would of happened to you, if Zuko had not saved you? You had a piece of that mirror. Would you have sliced his throat, killed him, instead of merely stopping him with bloodbending? Is that how far you'd go to keep your morals?_

It had been too early in the day for bloodbending, she wanted to argue, but her mouth ran dry at that idea. She did have that shard in her hand. Would she have tried to kill him?

Well, this is why she was having Zuko train her. So she would be able to get out trouble without harming others, without resorting to the most dangerous weapon she had. Gaining strength from that thought, Katara shoved that ugly part of her mind away.

She sat up, trying to finger-comb her hair as she looked around. It looked like the men in the camp were just beginning to wake, just like her. Hoping her hair didn't look too wild, Katara got up and walked over.

One man was squatting by a small fire, cooking up some sort of breakfast. The smell of food was quickly making everyone pick their heads up. He looked up and smiled at Katara when she sat down to help him.

After all the men had risen and been fed, a small party was put together to travel to the next town. Iroh went with them, leaving Zuko and Jee in charge.

Once he had seen his uncle off, Zuko turned to see Katara standing knee-deep the water, hands working quickly to braid her hair. He hesitated for a moment, then walked over. "Um…"

She didn't hear him, slowly raising her hands. Zuko watched as the water shifted and rippled around her, then began to stream away from her legs. The rocks under her shoes were revealed, leaving a dry perimeter of about two feet around her.

She looked over her shoulder when Zuko called her name. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"I wanted to check out the boat we hit," she told him. "Want to come with me? A firebender might be useful, it might be too dark for me to see down there."

"You're going to…walk out to the sunken ship?" Zuko asked, incredulous.

"Well, yeah. Wouldn't you like to see it? I mean, I could swim, but there's the whole problem of having to breathe. If I walk out, I won't have to keep going back up for air."

"I guess," Zuko said hesitantly. He stepped into the water, and in three strides moved into the bubble Katara had created for herself. It was eerie, when his legs suddenly hit air instead of water. She smiled when he stumbled slightly, then turned away from him and started walking away from shore.

Zuko kept close on her heels, staring as the water crept high and higher. The hair on the back of his neck rose as it reached over his head, and then suddenly met, enclosing him and Katara completely.

"You okay back there?" Katara smirked over her shoulder. "You're breathing down my neck."

"What? Oh." Zuko hurriedly backed off her.

Katara couldn't help but giggle. "Calm down, I'm not going to drown you."

"I didn't think—"

"I'm teasing you, Zuko. Chill." Katara paused and pushed the water back more, giving them more room. "Better?"

Zuko glared at her back, not saying anything. He'd like to see how comfortable she'd be surrounded by walls of fire on all sides.

They continued walking, and slowly Zuko's apprehension died down. This was actually kind of…amazing. He marveled at it. Here they were, two people, walking along the bottom of the ocean. And Katara was acting as if this was nothing special.

He turned his head up to gaze above them, watching as the light rippled and wavered. They must be at least thirty feet under now, and the light was beginning to dim. He raised a hand and generated a flame so they could see.

The light bounced off the water, creating walls of mirrors around them. Katara stopped, surprised, and unable to see in front of them.

"Oh, sorry," Zuko mumbled, and dimmed the flame.

A smile split Katara's face as she spun around, watching as the firelight glinted off the water. "Don't apologize. It's…beautiful."

Zuko couldn't help but stare at her face, which was light up with awe. He felt a strange twist in his chest as he watched her, and he couldn't describe it. What he was feeling, what was happening…it couldn't be labeled.

He felt as if time had stopped, that this wasn't actually happening. Perhaps he was dreaming, that he hadn't woken up this morning. Because surely something like this couldn't happen in real life.

The more he thought about it, the more unreal it seemed. A firebender and a waterbender, standing on the bottom of the ocean, surrounded on all sides by glittering walls. And the waterbender was the most interesting, most fascinating person he had ever met. She couldn't be real. No one could be as smart as she was, as brave, as gorgeous, as amazing.

An overwhelming urge to touch her surged through him. He swallowed hard and tore his eyes away, studying his feet. _Stop that, _he thought to himself.

"Oh!" Katara drew his attention back. "I think…this must be what the ship hit."

He turned to see what she was looking at. Katara was bending over a large structure of metal, the tip of which was buried in the sand. Zuko followed it, where it angled up and continued off out of view of their air bubble.

"This almost looks like…"

"A command tower," Zuko answered, narrowing his eyes. "Much smaller than ours, but it could be."

Katara faced where it led off to, and took a few steps back. She raised her arms, then spun forward. The bubble doubled in size and the walls of water rippled and wavered, now enveloping a large sheet of metal that sat on the ocean floor.

"We've reached the ship," Katara said with a smile. She pushed the water away even further, so that the top of the side came in view.

Head titled back, Katara examined the scene. It looked as if the watch tower had been knocked off when their ship had collided with it. It was hanging off the side, warping the railing where it had fallen. Truly, it was merely a glorified crow's nest, as there was no roofed structure atop it, just a circular plane of metal with short walls. The side that Katara could see, the side not buried deep in the sand, was crumpled in and dented, presumably by being run into by their ship.

"Zuko, does this look like a Fire Nation ship to you?" Katara asked, glancing over her shoulder.

"I suppose so, the architecture is similar" he answered, hoping she hadn't noticed him staring at her. "It's a bit hard to tell from here."

"We can fix that." Katara put a hand on the tower, then hopped up on top of it in a crouch. Zuko quickly moved forward to steady her as she swayed. Once she had made sure the water wouldn't cave in on them, she grinned down at Zuko. "Thanks."

A heat that had nothing to do with the flame in his hand crept up his neck as he removed his hand from her waist. He mumbled something in reply. Katara began to carefully ascend the tower, and once she was enough distance away, Zuko climbed up after and began to follow.

"Well, I guess there's our answer," Katara said when she jumped down onto the ship.

In the dim light, she could make out a large flame, the symbol of the Fire Nation, painted onto deck, reaching from one side to the other. The ship itself wasn't that large, easily half the size of the one Katara and Zuko had been traveling in. As Zuko jumped onto the deck, Katara froze the water surrounding the ship, then lowered her arms. "Zuko?" she asked.

"Yes?"

"Could you make that a little brighter?"

Zuko complied without comment, and both were silent for a moment as they took in the scene before them.

With the stronger light, they could now see the damage. The fallen watch tower was the least of this ship's problems. Deep gouges marred the paint on the deck. Varying sizes of earth, some boulders, others fist-sized rocks, were embedded in the metal, tearing holes right through the deck in certain places. Farther down the ship's length was a cabin, and the door was punched in. A skeleton dressed in the ragged remains of a Fire Nation uniform was propped beside it, slouching against the wall.

Zuko moved closer, carefully skirting a hole in the deck. A quick peek inside revealed another skeleton, the clothes so deteriorated he couldn't discern Fire Nation or not. "Goes without saying, Earth Kingdom attack," he said, toeing a rock that had seaweed attached aside. "Probably years ago, telling by the bodies. Though I guess that being exposed to sea life would speed up deterioration."

"Is that what you think?" Katara asked, tone strangely calm.

"Well, of course. Look at these boulders! They must have attacked from the shore, catapulted them onto the ship." He turned to Katara, and faltered when he saw her face. Her brows were drawn together, and her mouth was tightly pursed. "Katara? What's wrong? Is it the bodies?"

"Yes, it's the bodies," Katara snapped. "And before you think it's some feminine squeamishness, I've seen plenty of dead before. It's the fact that they're here at all. And you just assume that the Fire Nation soldiers were the ones who were attacked."

Zuko was taken aback by her sudden change of mood. "Katara, what…?"

"I guess I shouldn't expect any different, of course you would support your men." She looked down and rubbed her forehead. Her tone softened. "I don't know what I was expecting; ships don't just sink for no reason. And I'm not angry at you. I'm just angry at…everything.

"You don't even seem to be bothered by this. You act as if you see this everyday." Katara sighed and drew her gaze up. "Doesn't this bother you?"

Zuko hesitated before speaking, and then carefully said, "No, not really. I feel grief that men from my nation died, but I don't feel…a personal sadness for this. I didn't know these men, and it happened some time ago."

Katara shook her head. "Well, I grieve for them. All of them. Fire Nation, Earth Kingdom…I don't care, they shouldn't of had to die. And for what, really?" She paused, and then asked him directly, "Zuko, what do you think of this war? Do you support it?"

"I support the actions of my nation," Zuko said stiffly. He had not been expecting a political argument when he had agreed to go exploring with her, and he wasn't sure how to respond to her.

She snorted. "Don't dance around it. Do you approve of the war, or not?"

"You clearly don't seem to."

Katara shook her head at him. "Why can't you just tell me? It's just me and you down here, Zuko. No one else. We've been avoiding this since we met. The reason we're where we are now. We've never talked about it—but I need to know. _Do you approve of the war? _Do you think that it's the right thing to do? Heck, while we're at it, why do you think I'm here at all? Do you believe that your father really wants peace between our two nations, that he's asking for my hand because he wants to end the war?"

Zuko glared at her. They weren't supposed to talk about these things. It had been a silent agreement between them that they would never bring up these topics, because it might ruin the frail friendship they had been building. It was fine if they argued over simple things, such as hypothetical battle strategy or their favorite piece of literature, but politics? Never. They were too close to the heart of it to be able to disagree and still get along. He was the prince of the Fire Nation. She was the Lady of the Southern Water Tribe. They should be enemies, simply by title. If they ignored that, pretended that the

war didn't exist, then they could be friends.

And now, that they were completely alone, where not a soul could hear their opinions—well, there wasn't any reason not to be honest. Not a single one—except that Zuko had never been in such a situation. He had never been alone with someone who wouldn't condemn him for his beliefs.

Zuko was silent for so long Katara thought he was never going to answer her, and she was about to throw up her hands in disgust when he suddenly broke the silence.

"No."

So simple a word, and it surprised her. Katara stopped, closed her mouth from when she opened it to snarl at him.

Zuko met her eyes steadily, almost daring her to argue with him. "No, I don't. I don't approve of the war. I don't think my father wants peace. I don't think he asked for your hand for the reasons he said."

Zuko swallowed as relief and guilt crashed over him at the same time. "I love my country," he said, sounding as if desperate to convince her. "I love it more than you can imagine. But I do not trust my father. I do not think that he—" Zuko bit his lip, his mind telling him to shut up, stop talking, don't say these things, especially to a water bender! But he had already started, and he couldn't stop. The words began pouring out of him.

"He doesn't love our country. I don't think he's capable of loving anything. He certainly never loved my mother. I think the only thing he cares about is himself, is his power. I believe that even if Azulan, his father before him, had not planted this idea of a war on the world in his head, my father would have done it anyway, merely for the power. The control. That's all he cares about. Not his people. Not his nation. Not his children, not his wife."

Katara stared at Zuko, unable to speak. She wanted to go to him, to calm him down, but she feared if she tried he would only push her away, as worked up as he was.

"You've never met my father," he said to her. "You've heard stories, and rumors, about him, but you don't know him. Nobody does. Not like I do. If he can't control something, he destroys it. Simply because it opposes his will.

"Azula knows that, too. She—I think because she was younger than me, because my father always seemed to prefer her—she accepted that better. She molded herself to be his perfect child. She does not like being controlled, but she did what she had to. And I think she's done it so long that she's accepted that she is a tool for him, and doesn't question it.

"I'm not that lucky, Katara," he said with a sick sort of smile. "I don't like fighting. I don't like hurting people. But I do, because it's what he wants. Because if I didn't, he would do the same to me that he did my mother."

The hurt in his expression pulled at Katara's heart strong enough to overcome her discomfort. "Zuko," she whispered, and moved to take his hand.

"No." He shook her off. "I'm not a coward—I'm not doing what he wants just to survive, Katara. I'm surviving because one day, he'll die. Even a man as powerful as him can't live forever, no matter how much land he conquers, no matter how strong his army is. And when that time comes, when he finally dies, someone has to fill that place. And I have to be there. It can't be Azula. Ozai has twisted her around so much she believes his mission—that this war is to share our greatness with the world," he said with a snort. "And there are others, others back in the Fire Nation, that would jump at the chance to be the Fire Lord, should the circumstances be right. To help themselves, not their nation. You saw Zhao, you know how crazy he is. And he's not even the worse of them, Katara. When you get to the palace, you'll see. Backstabbing bastards, the whole lot of them. I think—I think that there must be madness in our blood, or something," Zuko said, sounding almost hysterical at the point, "because we all seem to be a little nuts. The most normal out of all of us is Iroh, and you didn't know him before his family died. He was almost as zealous as the rest of us, and it took the death of his loved ones to calm him down."

He took a deep breath, coming back to himself, back to the point. He turned to Katara. "I need to support this war, and support my father, so I can inherit his throne. I need to fix what my father and grandfather have done. I don't know if I will be able to—the war has already hurt so many, changed so much, but I need to try."

When he finished, he was breathing hard and staring at her. Desperate for her to say something. To confirm his beliefs, or condemn him, anything.

When Katara finally spoke, her voice was soft. "I guess we're not so different, then. Both of us are suffering for the benefit of our people."

Zuko let out a self-loathing laugh. "Yes, but at least you're being brave about it. You're willingly subjecting yourself to a marriage with the man who has killed your people, ordered the genocide the likes of which we have never seen. What am I doing? Absolutely nothing. I'm just sitting around, and waiting for my father to die of old age." He snorted. "No, Katara, we are not alike. You will always be stronger than I ever will be."

"I don't believe that's true, Zuko. And what other option do you have? If you try to oppose him now, it will only create a disaster. Even if you were the one to come out on top, you would face a government, a nation you had taken by force. I think this world has seen enough violence. The natural ending of a life would be the best way to pass power down, so you wouldn't have to fear those loyal to him at your back."

Zuko knew what she was saying was true. He had thought of it many times. Even if, by some miracle, he could best his father—kill?—he would not be able to trust those closest to the throne. He sister would be problem enough, such a sycophant she was of his father, not to mention the council or nobles of the Fire Nation. And the people had been murmuring of the unexpected death of Azulan and Ursa, and Ozai's sudden taking of the throne. It would be best not to make it traditional that patricide was the only way to rise to power.

"Zuko…" Katara licked her lips, then met his gaze. "Can you promise me something? After this journey is over, and after whatever happens happens…I want you to end this war. Can you do that? Can you try to bring peace to our nations?"

"I'll do everything within my power to end this, Katara. I swear it."

XXXXX

As the sun began to sink that day, Zuko found himself in the same position as the previous night, sitting in front of a fire with Katara. Despite what he had decided that morning, about not allowing the two of them to get too close…after what they had talked about on the ship, Zuko couldn't bear the thought of trying to get along with the crew and pretend that nothing had happened.

In an attempt to stick to his promise, he sat on the other side of the fire, and told himself that the second one of them began to yawn or drift off, it was back to the tents.

"They certainly are a little more…rambunctious, tonight," Katara noted, nodding towards the rest of the camp, where some of the crew were dancing and singing around their own campfires.

"They found that one of the barrels of wine had been cracked slightly when we crashed…decided they couldn't let it go to waste," Zuko told her.

"So they're going to drink the whole thing? In one night?" Katara laughed. "They are going to be really grouchy in the morning."

Zuko agreed, leaning forward and wrapping his arms around his knees. Eyeing her across the fire, he ventured, "Katara?"

"Hmm?"

"You never told me why you volunteered for all of this. The way I heard it, the original declaration for cease-fire was meant for the Northern Water Tribe girl."

A sad smile crossed Katara's face. "Well, they never specifically named her, but yes, it was implied that it was her hand that Ozai was asking for. We were lucky, I guess, about that."

"'We?'" Zuko repeated.

Katara nodded. "The princess of the Northern Water Tribe is named Yue. Do you know anything about her?"

"No. I didn't even know her name. I haven't heard anything about her, actually."

"There's not much to tell," Katara said. "She's a sweet girl. Beautiful, too, but she doesn't make waves, so I'm not surprised there isn't much talk about her. With all the war meetings, we got to know each other. And, well. She got to know my brother." Zuko thought back to the young man he had seen the day he met Katara. From what he could remember, they seemed to be arguing when she left. "Sokka and Yue…they fell in love."

"Oh." Zuko tried to imagine what it must have been like for her, and for him. Either way, he lost someone he loved. If Katara hadn't stepped up for Yue, her brother would have lost the woman he loved. And because Katara knew that…he had lost his sister.

"Did you know, that the day the messenger came from the Fire Nation was the day Sokka was going to propose to her? He had been planning it for weeks. Remember when I told you about my necklace?" she asked, tapping it against her collarbone. Zuko nodded. "That day he showed me the pendant he planned to give to her. He had been working so hard on it. He had this bag with him, it was full of pieces he had made mistakes on, or didn't like. There must have been dozens of them." A laugh bubbled in her throat, but when it escaped her mouth, it came out as a sob. "I just can't imagine how terrible it must have been for him," Katara gasped, wiping her eyes. "I mean, what could he do? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He would have had to watch as the love of his life, this girl he had planned to marry—this sweet, innocent girl—was stolen away. By the man that Sokka has spent his life fighting, the man who was the reason our mother died. Because he couldn't do anything to stop it. He would have to go home, with that stupid bag of marriage pendants, and know that Yue was condemned to life chained to that man. And Zuko, you didn't know her—she would go through with it, she would, because she's strong, in her own way—but she isn't strong enough. I know, I just _know, _that it would kill her. She loved Sokka just as much as he loved her, and to be taken away from him, and be forced to marry the Fire Lord…it would crush her. Completely destroy her, mind, body, and spirit.

"But I'm strong. I'm strong enough. I can do this. I can do this, if it means that Sokka and Yue can be together." She clenched her eyes shut, trying to stop the hot tears from falling down her face. "All I want is for them to be happy. I just want them to be able to get married, and start a family together. In a world without war." She pressed her face into Zuko's chest, not sure when he had moved to her side, but not caring. "I don't know what Ozai has planned, but I can take it. Because I have to, for them. I can do this. I can."

Zuko put his arms around her, trying to soothe her, running his hand over her hair. He tried to quiet her, but she kept crying. It had been too long since Katara had faced her feelings, and all day emotions had been running high, and now she couldn't stop.

"I just don't want their children to have to grow up like me and Sokka did. Without a mother, with war. We grew up too fast—I just don't want them to have to grow up too fast."

Zuko gently rocked her as his mother rocked him when he was young, quietly shushing in her ear. Growing up too fast. Katara and Sokka weren't the only ones. Zuko wondered what his life would have been like if his mother hadn't died. If he actually had a relationship with his sister, like Katara had with her brother.

Finally Katara cried herself out, and eventually pulled herself out of his embrace. Red in the face from sobbing and embarrassment, Katara rubbed her eyes and nose. "I'm sorry," she sniffed. "I—I didn't mean to…that wasn't supposed to happen. You weren't supposed to see me like this."

"It's alright," he said quietly, rubbing her shoulder. "I mean, it wouldn't really be fair after I had a breakdown you wouldn't either."

She laughed at that, and it sounded awful, all cracked and wet. Katara shook her head. "We really are a mess, aren't we?"

He could have made a joke then, about how looked after crying like that, or how she had gotten his shirt wet. But he didn't. Instead he told her, "Katara, you are strong enough to do this. I don't know anyone who could have done something as brave and as selfless as you have."

Katara sighed, rubbing her face again. "Sometimes it doesn't feel brave or selfless. Sometimes I just feel like a stupid little girl sticking my nose in places it doesn't belong." She turned her dried eyes on to him, now serious. "But I mean it, Zuko. I need you to keep your promise. I know that it's probably too late for us…but it isn't for the next generation. We need to give them a fighting chance."

"I know, Katara. I know. I won't forget."

XXXXX

**This chapter may seem a little repetitive, but I've been trying to figure out where to place these talks, because they've been bouncing around in my head for ages, and figured it was about damn time I put them down. Just working out Zuko's plan and motivation, and trying to make Katara realize that she doesn't have to be superwoman 24/7 when she's around Zuko.**

**I'm doing my best to slowly introduce the Zutara, because while I really just want to toss them together NOW, it really wouldn't make any sense. I tried working in some more substantial relationship stuff, but it felt out of place and I had to delete it. Slow and steady wins the race, I guess.**


	11. Chapter 11

"_Leave me," Ozai ordered, and the messenger scuttled out of the room. As soon as the door closed behind him, Ozai let out a ferocious growl and got to his feet. Damn that Zhao. He had ruined everything._

_How on earth had he misunderstood Ozai's orders of shaming that Water Tribe girl to think he should force himself on her? Ozai had made himself clear. He needed Zhao to publicly shame her in such a way that his people would believe that the people of the Water Tribe couldn't be trusted. That they had lose morals, no honor, whatever it took for his subjects to think that the Water Tribes weren't like them._

_Instead, Zhao decided to force himself on her the first night they met. Attacked her, if the message he had just received was to be trusted. And not only that, oh no, Zhao had done it just in time for the Prince of the Fire Nation to rush in and save her. Defended her honor, winning an Agni Kai against the Commander. _

_It had become a damned spectacle, a story to be told for years to come. The brave prince rushing in to save the innocent young bride to be from the evil soldier. It sounded as if it had come straight out of a fairy tale. As soon as word got out of this incident, the people of the Fire Nation would sing the praises of their heroic prince Zuko; and rally around the young Katara, who was still bravely going forward with her promise, even though she had been attacked by a Fire Nation soldier who she was supposed to be able to trust. _

_He tugged on his beard as he struggled to come up with a way to salvage this disaster. He had been hoping that Zhao would make Katara look like a self-serving woman who was only looking out for herself, willing to switch allegiances as soon as it suited her better. He needed his people to feel insulted enough that they would not oppose a full-out war with the Water Tribes. And now…now Katara looked like a saint in the eyes of his people._

_He wasn't sure if he could change his people's opinion, now. He wouldn't be able to keep this story quiet. If he did anything less than welcome her with open arms, he would seem cold and cruel._

_Ozai didn't know how to proceed. He may be the Fire Lord, but he still needed his people's approval to rule. Should the public become displeased with him, it would hurt morale. Divide his people. It could even snow-ball into rebellions. Not that he thought the situation was that dire, but he had to be careful._

_All was not lost, though. He still had the girl. He could still use her against her own, if the need came to it. She may only be a single girl, but she was loved by her people. Surely they wouldn't want anything to happen to her. All-out war might be off the table, but he could still manipulate the situation to his will._

XXXXX

Katara sighed as she floated in the water, closing her eyes. A smile crossed her face. It had been a long time since she had relaxed like this, just letting her mind drift as if nothing else existed.

She had left the camp behind half an hour ago, telling them she was going to find a private place to bathe. Zuko had merely nodded, barely looking up from the double swords he was trying to sharpen with borrowed equipment from one of the other soldiers. Katara didn't particularly mind. She was a bit embarrassed about crying in front of him, and figured he probably felt the same way. It was probably best if they kept some distance between them for the moment.

She had made sure that the pond she chose was far away from camp—not that she thought anyone would peep, but she still didn't want a bored soldier wandering across her while she was trying to bathe. She had also promised herself she would be quick so there was no chance of that happening, but as soon as she had dove into the water…well. It was funny how even though she had been on a ship for weeks, surrounded by water, she hadn't been able to enjoy it.

And it wasn't as if she had anything to do today. They weren't expecting the rest of the crew to return until tomorrow. Why not waste an hour or so enjoying herself?

She dove under, kicking down until she reached the bottom. Katara turned so her feet were in the muddy silt, and then propelled herself back up, laughing when she broke the surface. She tossed her hair out of her face and dipped back under again, lazily circling the pond.

If she hadn't been underwater, she might have heard the twigs snapping underfoot.

XXXXX

Zuko carefully ran his thumb over the Dao sword, noting that he had managed to put an edge on it, but it still wasn't as sharp as he would like. Figuring he wouldn't get much better with the tools he was using, he set it aside and started on its twin.

Sharpening his weapons was keeping his hands busy, but not his mind. He kept thinking about what he and Katara had spoken of the day before. He had never, ever, shared his thoughts like that with someone, until he met her. Not even his uncle. He idly wondered if Iroh knew what Zuko thought of his father. He wondered whether Iroh felt the same. Did he suspect that Ozai had killed his own wife, and their father? If he did, why did he keep his silence? Ozai had taken the throne, which was rightfully his older brother's. Was Iroh just sick with grief, over losing his son, and his father, and his sister-in-law? When he had come back from the failed attack on the Earth Kingdom, was his uncle just tired of violence, of war?

Zuko thought about how quickly Iroh had latched onto him. As soon as Iroh returned and found out what had changed, he took Zuko under his wing. Even as his face was still healing, Iroh made a point of making sure Zuko trained every day. Zuko didn't want to. He had just lost his mother, and, in a way, his father. He had no interest in learning how to use his bending to hurt people.

Iroh didn't force him. After his face had been burned, for months afterwards, Zuko didn't bend. At all. Instead, Iroh taught him how to fight the way non-benders did. With their hands. And weapons.

Both of them had been surprised with how quickly Zuko had taken to it. Iroh had been reluctant to teach Zuko so much, so quickly, but eventually decided that if Zuko wanted to learn there was no harm in that. When Zuko found a new weapon that Iroh wasn't familiar with, he brought in a tutor. Iroh had sure Zuko always had plenty of sparring partners, making sure to change them regularly so that Zuko never had it easy.

Now, years later, he thought about that. Was Iroh trying to prepare him? Make sure that he could always protect himself, no matter what? Did he think that he hadn't prepared his own son well enough, and that was why he lost him?

Zuko pressed his lips together as his hands stilled, and he stared down at the sword he had been sharpening. Iroh was always trying to protect Zuko, but now Zuko had someone he wanted to protect. He wanted to protect Katara, his friend. Except…he couldn't. Swords wouldn't help him. Nothing could help him, help her. He had told Katara his big plans for the future, about waiting his father out so he could change the direction of the country…but what about Katara? She couldn't wait. She didn't have time.

Zuko let out a long sigh and straightened, letting his head fall back. Thinking like this wasn't going to help either of them. Katara was old enough to make her own decisions; she didn't need or want him to swoop in and save her. And he shouldn't want to. She wasn't his to save. She wasn't his anything, besides friend. That was it.

He was beginning to get concerned with the number of times he'd had to tell himself that, over and over. Zuko didn't have much experience with friendships, but this was beginning to feel like something different. Something he wasn't allowed to feel. Something that, if Zuko ever stopped trying to fight, would open such a can of worms that what he had already been through would merely feel like a walk in the park.

Zuko dug his thumb against the edge of the sword, satisfied when it bit into his skin and drew blood. Don't even think about it, he told himself. If you don't think about it, it doesn't exist.

It was time he found something to do that would keep his mind busy, not just his hands. All this thinking wasn't good, not when it was heading in that certain direction. He stood and sheathed the swords.

Just as he bent down to pick up the sharpening tools he had been borrowing, a shout and a burst of heat from the other side of camp made him whirl around.

XXXXX

Katara pulled herself out of the water, figuring that she had spent enough time to herself. She didn't want the others to get worried about why she had been gone for so long. With one quick motion, she wicked the water off her body, sending it back into the pond. After donning her clothes, Katara began leisurely walking back to camp, braiding her hair as she went. She had decided to leave it wet, since it was always easier to manage when it was dripping rather than dry.

If she hadn't been looking down, watching her fingers as she braided her hair across her shoulder, she probably wouldn't have seen the boot-print in the dirt. Katara stilled her hands as she stared down at it.

It was definitely fresh, she registered. And she recognized the shape. Fire Nation issue.

Katara immediately spun around, searching the trees. She'd kill whoever had been peeping on her, the creep. "Who's there?" she demanded, voice sharp. She couldn't see anyone, but that didn't mean they weren't hiding now that she realized she wasn't alone. "I know you're there!"

There was no response. Katara turned in a circle, glaring. When she found out who it was, she would rip them limb from limb. Pervert, watching her bathe!

Katara calmed her embarrassment and anger enough so that she could focus on her bending. She planned on sensing for water around her, but she needn't have bothered, because in the next second, a form slipped out from behind one of the trees in front of her. "My lady. So nice to see you again."

Katara stared, speechless for a moment. All her anger fizzled away in seconds, to be replaced with confusion and creeping apprehension. "Zhao?" she breathed, horrified. How had he…what was he doing here? He was supposed to be locked up!

He smiled at her, but there was no warmth in it. "No hello? Lady Katara, I thought you would be happy to see me. I know I certainly am."

Katara's mind whirled, but she knew one thing. This was not good. She quickly got over her shock as she realized that she was in danger. Zhao was not her friend. He had tried to kill her the last time she had seen him.

His smile grew as he looked at her, slowing prowling forward. "Why, you look scared. I can't imagine why. It's not as if I might wish you harm, after how we parted."

"You're supposed to be locked up on your ship," she said stupidly, keeping space between them. "How—Why—"

Zhao seemed to take amusement from her stuttering. He held a hand out to his side, casually forming a small ball of fire in his palm. He kept his eyes on it, but spoke to her. "Well, you see, I have some very loyal men under me. Men willing to go against their orders to help their commanding officer."

Were there others? Katara swallowed hard and hastily sent her powers out, searching for more bodies around her. It was a small relief when she registered only her and Zhao were in the clearing. She was all alone with this maniac.

Zhao didn't notice her glancing around and tossed the flame into his other hand. "Men willing to…_rise against_ those who showed no loyalty to me. I think you'd be surprised how easy it was to secure a crew and a ship in order to chase after those who had shamed me. Just the mention of the rewards that would come for following me…and suddenly I had my own little band of men." He turned his gaze to her. "And, if my math is correct, a larger number than the men that are traveling with you."

Katara's back hit a tree, and she took a steadying breath. If Zhao was telling the truth, and she and him were the only two here, then that meant they were attacking the camp. And their numbers were already depleted, with half of the crew taking off for the next village.

Zhao drew his hands together, then separated them, now sporting two balls of flame. "Imagine my surprise when we came across your traveling band, and found out that your ship had been marooned! Why, I couldn't believe my luck. And then, you went off and separated yourself?"

Katara saw the glint of madness in Zhao's eyes as he came closer and fought the urge to simply turn tail and run. She struggled to focus herself and prepared to meet Zhao's move when he made it.

"Such luck makes me think that it must be destiny. Your people believe in such things, don't you? That one could be chosen by the gods?" Zhao stopped a few feet away, tipping his head to stare at her. "Clearly, when things fell so easily into place, it was meant to be this way. The second you rose against me, you were doomed." He drew his lips back into a smile that was too wide, that showed too much teeth. "My lady, you should have taken my offer, when I first gave it to you. As much as I will enjoy killing you, I would have much preferred being able to keep you all to myself."

"I think you'll find me a bit more difficult than last time," Katara told him, trying to rally herself, even though her heart was thrumming in her throat. "You made a mistake. You shouldn't have faced me when there's water nearby."

Before she even finished speaking, Zhao had lunged. Katara dove out of the way and twisted, slinging a blade of water in his direction.

XXXXX

Zuko growled as he swept the fire away from him, standing to face yet another opponent. Jee was at his side, fighting off another. "Where are they all coming from?" he demanded, panting.

"I don't know! But they're overwhelming us!"

The ambush had been so quick, Zuko hadn't even realized what was happening before the camp had been surrounded. Easily two dozen, if not more, men had poured out of the trees, backing Zuko and his crew against the water. They had quickly banded together, doing their best to fend off the attack, but they were being overpowered.

Even more disorienting—they seemed to be Fire Nation. Unless this was some disguise by his enemies, Zuko was being attacked by his own people. He had run into rogue firebenders before, but those uniforms were Fire Nation Navy issue.

"Where's the General?" one of them yelled to another. "He was supposed to be with them!"

"Maybe he's with the Water girl!" the other soldier shouted back, knocking aside the crewmember that had leapt at him. "The Commander will deal with them!"

At that, Zuko glanced at Jee. They shared a look. Katara was in danger.

"Go to her!" Jee shouted, kicking away a soldier that got too close. "We'll hold them back."

Zuko didn't argue. He charged the line that was pinning them in, and used a startled soldier to springboard himself over them. Without looking back, he darted off into the trees.

"Don't let the Prince escape!" one of them shouted, turning to chase after him.

Jee tackled him down. "Men! Don't let them get away! Protect the Water Lady!" The crew shouted in response, fighting to detain any of the soldiers from following Zuko.

Zuko ran through the trees, praying that Katara hadn't gone too far, and that she hadn't already run into trouble. He should have never let her out of his sight, if she got hurt—

No, Katara was strong, he tried to assure himself as he ran. He couldn't think like that. He had sparred against her, seen her in action. She could hold her own, at least until he got there.

So long as she didn't have to face a whole group of them. Zuko ran faster.

XXXXX

Katara knelt by the water's edge, panting. She ripped off the sleeve of her gown that was smoking and tossed it aside. "That the best you got?" she demanded, trying to ignore the pain from her arm.

Zhao snarled at her, wiping blood from his mouth. His uniform was slashed across the front, and shallow wounds were still bleeding across his chest.

Katara licked her lips. This wasn't good. She may be a good bender, but Zhao was a Commander of the Fire Nation Navy. And he had the power of insanity pushing him on. The crazed look in his eyes was enough to convince her. He had lost it—completely, absolutely lost his grip on reality.

He had continued talking to her as he tried to kill her. Between obscenities and curses, Katara had pieced together he thought that if he killed her, and Zuko and Iroh and the crew, he would be welcomed back to the Fire Nation. It was her fault all this had happened, her fault his life had fallen apart—

Katara threw up a shield of ice as Zhao thrust more fire at her, just in time. The ferocity of it almost knocked her over. She struggled to keep her feet as the burst of flame pushed her back, eating away at the ice she fought to keep between them. A biting pain on her ankle alerted her that her dress had once again caught fire.

In that moment of distraction, Zhao had rushed her, using his body to break through the now-brittle shield and knocking her to the ground. Katara had enough time to punch her fist into his cheek before the weight of his body slammed her against the dirt, knocking the breath out of her.

Zhao merely shook off the blow. Leaning close, he whispered to her, "Isn't this familiar? And you seemed to think that having water would help you. Funny how even though you have it right at hand you're right back where you were."

Katara choked for breath as his hand tightened on her throat. Closing her eyes, she gathered water into her hand, freezing it. "Get—off—me," she grit out, and stabbed the ice-dagger deep into his side.

Zhao bellowed with pain, letting go of her throat and twisting away. Katara scrambled out from under him, coughing and trying to see through the spots that were dancing before her eyes.

"Bitch!" Zhao yanked out the dagger with a grunt, and turned his attention to her. She hadn't put enough distance between them, and he grabbed her hand, yanking her to him. Katara didn't fight him and went with it, throwing herself into the motion and smashing her elbow into his face. Zhao reeled back, dropping the dagger, but not letting her go. He stumbled back into the water, free hand held to his face, dragging her with him. Katara fought his grip, trying to get away, but his grip was too strong. Her feet slipped in the muddy bottom, and she fell, throwing Zhao off-balance as well.

Katara desperately tried to regain her feet and get away, but Zhao's hands were on her again, this time slamming her head down. Her forehead smacked against a rock that was half-buried in the mud, and she gasped with the impact. Water flooded her lungs, and she spewed it out as Zhao dragged her back up.

He turned her so they were face to face, dragging her close. "I'm going to drown you, water rat. In your own element." He shoved her under again, ignoring Katara's flailing limbs. "And then I'm going to burn your little prince to a crisp."

Katara gouged at Zhao's hands with her nails, drawing blood, but he didn't release her. She couldn't kick him, not when his knee was on her stomach, pinning her into the mud. She swallowed more water as she tried to fight him, choking on it.

Air. She needed air. She couldn't think. Too much water, it was killing her—she couldn't breathe—

Somewhere, as Katara's vision began to fade, her spirit rallied. No. She would not allow this man, this bastard, to kill her this way. If she was going to die, it would not be like this. With the last of her strength, Katara closed her fist around the water around her, and swung.

The hammer of ice she had created cracked against Zhao's skull. Instantly, the hands on her shoulders went slack. Zhao swayed, and then crashed into the water.

His body fell on top of her, trapping her even more surely than his hands had. Katara couldn't push him off. She had swallowed too much water, couldn't breathe, couldn't think…

And then, the weight was gone. Hands were on her, but they were dragging her out, not pushing her down. Katara spurted and coughed, vomiting out the water that had almost killed her, shaking in the arms that held her.

She ignored the fluttering hands on her, the questions, everything, only able to focus on the amazing thing that was air. Oh, she could breathe, and even if her throat was raw and it hurt, it was the best sensation ever. Katara gulped it in, head swimming. She pressed her forehead against her hands on the ground, fighting the coughing fit and glad to be above water.

Zuko stopped asking if she was okay when her breathing evened out and she quieted. He tightened his grip on her and pressed his face into her hair. "Oh, you're alright. Thank Agni."

"Zuko?" Katara asked, once she came back to herself. Zuko pulled away from her, but didn't let go of her arms.

"I thought you were dead."

"So did I," she said, voice raw and terrible. She turned to Zhao. Zuko had dragged him clear of the water to get at her, and he was lying motionless in the mud. "Did I kill him?" she asked quietly.

"I don't know."

Katara stared at his body for a moment, about to go over and see, when Zuko stood and tugged at her arm. When she turned to look at him, he pulled her to her feet. "Katara, we need to move. Zhao wasn't the only one. He brought a whole group of men, and they've attacked the camp."

"Oh." Katara turned in the direction of camp, just now recognizing the noises of battle. "Well. We should do something." She trembled with another coughing fit, then looked at Zuko. "We should go help."

Zuko stared down at her. She was swaying in his grasp. There was a cut on her forehead, still bleeding, and her lip had been split. Her arm looked badly burned. She was in no shape to be fighting. The dazed look in her eyes, he wasn't even sure if she remembered her own name, let alone stand on her own.

He looked over his shoulder towards camp, then back at her. Zhao had been trying to kill her, and undoubtedly that's what his men were trying to do as well. Katara couldn't protect herself right now. He wanted to go back and help his men, but he couldn't risk Zhao's men getting close to Katara.

As if to prove his point, Katara tried to step out of his grip. She tried to move towards camp, but the second Zuko's hands were off her she tottered dangerously to the side, throwing her hands out for balance. Zuko quickly grabbed her again.

"I think I'm going to be sick," she said, clenching her eyes shut. "I need to lie down."

"We don't have time," Zuko told her, bending down so he could look into her eyes.

"Just for a minute?" she begged.

_Concussion, _Zuko thought. Not good. "Katara, I need you to stay awake. Do you hear me?" She didn't respond, but flinched away when Zuko tried to swipe the blood off her forehead. "Stay awake. Katara."

She just mumbled, turning away from his hands. Zuko swore inwardly and glanced once more back towards camp. It sounded like they were getting closer.

"Come on, put your arm around me," he urged her, throwing her arm around his shoulders and sliding his own around her waist. "There you go."

"But camp's that way," Katara protested feebly.

"I know. Come on."

XXXXX

Zuko burst out onto the road, right in front of the travelling merchants. He scared them half to death, their cart birds balking and squawking. Zuko ignored the commotion he had caused. Hefting the barely-conscious Katara against him, trying to keep her upright, he stepped towards them.

"Please," he begged. "I need your help."

**XXXXX**

**Short chapter, but a lot happens in it. Please review and let me know what you think, I'm a little divided on this one. **

**(I know I apologize every time for how long updates take, but I have three jobs at the moment, and have trouble finding time to write. I want to thank everyone for sticking with this very slow going story. It means a lot to me every time I sit down at my computer and see I've gotten another notification for this story.)**


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